


You Make Me Fall For You

by 100SleeplessNights



Series: Soul Marks [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Artist Draco Malfoy, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship/Love, HP: EWE, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Orphanage, Post-Hogwarts, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-28
Updated: 2018-03-24
Packaged: 2018-07-27 07:15:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 24,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7608760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/100SleeplessNights/pseuds/100SleeplessNights
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to You Left A Mark On Me.<br/>After finding out they are soulmates, Draco and Harry decided they had to get to know each other better before they could attempt a relationship, what follows is a lot of quality bonding time during which they not only get to know the other but also themselves better.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I finally managed to finish the first chapter of the sequel! I hope the following chapters won't take me as long.

“So what are you doing now that there’s no Dark Lord left to defeat anymore?” Draco asked when they met the next time.

Harry looked up at him confused, apparently completely unprepared for the question. “I meet my ex-nemesis/soulmate in a Muggle café.” He finally settled on.

Draco sighed. “And other than that?” He could see the hurt in Harry’s eyes as he demanded a real answer and felt sorry for asking instantly. But he wouldn’t take it back, primarily because he really wanted to know now.

“Nothing much…” Harry mumbled. “I’m currently renovating Grimmauld Place a little.”

“That’s a house from the Black family, right?” Draco asked. He had heard his mother talk about a house of the Black family Harry had inherited once.

“Uh… yeah. I inherited it from Sirius.”

“Why are you torturing yourself like this?” Draco wasn’t sure where that question had come from but as soon as he had asked he knew he wanted to know the answer.

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve attended every funeral thus far, you live in the house your deceased godfather willed to you, hell you probably do a hundred more things to remind you of the horrible things that happened in the war. Why are you torturing yourself like that?”

Harry just looked up at Draco and blinked. “All those people died for me, because of me. How can I not attend their funerals? How can I not mourn their deaths?”

“Harry.” Draco sighed and took the hand lying on the table in both of his. Mesmerized he watched it turn grey for a second before he focused on Harry's face again. “All the people who died in the war died for their ideologies, some died for pureblood supremacy and others for equality. No one died for Voldemort, for Dumbledore or even for you. They believed in something and fought for it and died in a _war_. It’s not your fault they died because you didn’t end it sooner. You were a teenager for Merlin’s sake; you shouldn’t _have_ to fight a war. A school shouldn’t be war ground, making every student part of the war raging on. It’s very noble of you to attend their funerals but you don’t have to. I don’t think anyone who matters to you expects you to.”

Harry just stared at him. Then he blinked. Then he continued to stare. Draco could almost see the cogs in his brain working.

“I…” he stammered. “You… you’re right…”

“Yes, I usually am,” Draco teased and squeezed Harry’s hand. The grey tint deepened a little. “Why don’t you volunteer in an orphanage for example? You would still help the survivors of the war but not risk your mental health for it.”

Draco would love to do something like that. He wanted to redeem himself by showing that he wasn’t his father who just donated money to whoever would support him in his political career. He honestly wanted to help. There was only one reason he hadn’t offered his help at an orphanage, yet. He was scared they wouldn’t let him help because they would only see the Dark Mark and how much he looked like his father.

“That’s a great idea actually,” Harry admitted after some thinking. “Would you come with me? We could spend some quality soulmate bonding time.”

It sounded like an honest offer and Draco found himself nodding. He had wanted to do it anyway, so why not? And with the Saviour of the Wizarding World at his side he surely wouldn’t get kicked out unless he did something to provoke it.

The bright smile Harry gave him in response showed Draco he had done the right thing. “Do you know any orphanages we could go to?”

“I actually know about a few,” Draco admitted. “I did a little research already because I wanted to help in a way that had nothing to do with just giving money but I chickened out when I realized that probably no one would want to have me.” He hated being this open with less than flattering things about himself but he really wanted to get to know Harry and he wouldn’t if he didn’t open up in turn.

“Thar’s very noble of you, Draco,” Harry replied and Draco couldn’t help but show a little smile at the praise. “I’m sure the orphanages would appreciate your help without looking at your past. Even offering to help shows how different you are from your father. We should definitely visit one together.”

“I think it beats getting coffee any time,” Draco joked and earned an honest smile from Harry.

“I have to agree. You should choose an orphanage and send me an owl when you want to go.”

 

Despite agreeing that an orphanage beat the cosy café they met in any time it took them several weeks to finally visit one. After drinking one too many Firewhiskeys Draco had finally sent Harry an owl telling him he had decided on the Remus Lupin Orphanage, named after the war hero and Harry’s good friend. Draco’s research had shown that they not only took in war orphans but also children who had been bitten by a magical creature, transforming them, and had been abandoned in the process.

Draco only remembered he had sent the letter when he got an excited letter back from Harry the next day. They decided to spend some time there the next weekend but still met for their obligatory coffee on Wednesday. It had become kind of a tradition to meet every week and Draco wasn’t sure they would stop their coffee dates (he refused to call them anything else, after all Harry had told him they could become boyfriends someday) once they spent time together at the orphanage.

 

Once there they were received by a white haired matron, who looked every bit the loving mother she seemed to be for the children. She ushered them inside and into the kitchen without looking at them twice. Draco and Harry shared a smile, grateful that they weren't treated like celebrity or villain but like normal people who wanted to help children in the aftermath of the war.

They talked to Lilian for a while (she had introduced herself to them as Lilian Argent and insisted they call her by her first name) and once the nap time was over she ushered them into the playroom so they could meet the children.

The first child to approach them was a little girl with bright blue eyes and chocolate brown hair. Lillian introduced her as Robin.

“I like your hair,” she said with a bright smile.

“Thank you,” Draco replied, making sure his hair still lay flat.

“No silly,” Robin corrected with a giggle. “I like his hair.” She pointed to Harry, who looked a little uncomfortable at being addressed. “It looks so fluffy.”

Harry blushed furiously, not really used to dealing with either children or compliments so he was understandably a little overwhelmed by the combination.

 

“Thank you, darling,” he finally brought out. “Do you want to make sure it’s as fluffy as it looks?”

The girl smiled brightly and nodded. Harry smiled back and pulled her onto his lap so she could reach his unruly mop of black hair.

“It’s really soft!” she marvelled but then hesitated. “Uhm… I don’t know your name, Mister.”

“My name is Harry. And you are Robin, right?”

Robin nodded excitedly.

 

In the meantime Draco had attracted the attention of another kid. A small toddler waddled up to him and demanded “Up! Up!”

Draco sighed and, resigning himself to his fate, picked the boy up. He had never held a child before so he was a bit unsure of what to do except keeping the boy from falling from his lap. Considering how much he moved it was probably a good idea.

After some squirming the child finally settled down against his chest and he found it felt good to hold a child and he was filled with the urge to protect this little human from everything the world might throw his way. His thoughts drifted off further and he imagined Harry and himself in the future, adopting one of the children from the orphanage, giving them all the love Harry and he had never gotten in their childhoods.

“What are you smiling about?” Harry asked, jarring him out of his dream future and back into the present.

“Just a stupid daydream,” he muttered. He wouldn’t tell Harry he had fantasized about them adopting children – at least not yet. They were barely friends, they still had a long way to go until they could begin a relationship and even longer until they would even consider adoption.

“Whatever it was, it looked like it made you very happy,” Harry pointed out. “I’ve never seen you smile so brightly and you have smiled a fair amount whenever we met for coffee.”

To his mortification a blush formed on Draco’s cheeks. Harry had watched his smiles so closely that he could see the subtle differences. It made Draco feel a little giddy with happiness.

“Yes, that smile,” Harry said. “That’s the smile you just wore.”

Draco’s blush deepened. He was doomed. He had officially fallen completely for Harry now, no turning back.

 

When they wanted to leave several hours later, children were clinging to their legs, pleading with them to stay just a little longer, to just read one more story or play one more game. Harry’s heart ached for them, how little love had they experienced in their short lives that they were so clingy after only one afternoon?

They could finally separate themselves by promising to come back the next day just before it was time for the youngest children to go to bed. They said goodbye to every child who wanted to with a kiss to the cheek or the forehead and waved to all of them and Lillian on their way out.

 

Once he had apparated home Harry had to admit Draco had been right, going to the orphanage was a much better way of helping the survivors of the war than anything he had done before and he looked forward to seeing all the children again the next day.

Standing in front of the mirror he traced all the places Draco had casually touched him during the afternoon with his fingers. With a smile on his face and Draco and the children in his thoughts, he slowly fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After a spark of inspiration a few nights ago, I finally finished the second chapter! I hope you like it.
> 
> Happy September 1st!

A few weeks later Draco decided that it was time to take a step further. They had been on several coffee dates and had visited the orphanage almost every weekend. Now he wanted to know what Harry was like under the influence of alcohol.

“Alright,” Harry agreed when they met for coffee the next time. “I’m sure it will be entertaining to see you loosen up a little.”

“Do you mean to say I’m stuck up?” Draco asked affronted.

Harry just gave him a teasing grin.

 

The next Friday, they met at a Muggle bar Draco had chosen. By now it seemed to him as if he was making all of the choices and Harry was just nodding along. It didn’t sit right with him so he asked Harry about it.

“I just want you to be comfortable where we are,” Harry explained after the waitress had put their lagers in front of them. “And I liked every place we met at so far. I already would have complained otherwise. Don’t worry, Draco. I can make my own choices.”

Harry smiled at him, successfully soothing his worries and Draco couldn’t help smiling back. Harry’s smile was both addictive and contagious and whenever he smiled around Harry he noticed again how little he smiled when he wasn’t.

 

A few pints of lager later, they went to Draco’s flat. He had bought it a few weeks ago to go to when he needed to get away from the pressing darkness in the Manor. It was closer to the bar than Harry’s and neither of them wanted to attempt to apparate with the amount of alcohol they had in their veins by now.

Once they were in his flat and Draco had brought out a bottle of Firewhiskey for them to share, Draco had to admit to himself that he really liked how Harry acted under the influence of alcohol. He knew people who got aggressive when drunk or overly emotional but Harry basically turned into a giant, slightly bony teddy bear. It began with Harry taking his hand and soon progressed into Harry leaning into him and tracing lazy patterns on his legs while still sipping on his glass occasionally. Strangely Draco was already looking forward to the resulting Marks on his skin. He really had it bad.

Draco could hold his liquor a lot better than Harry (and hadn’t drunk quite as much) so when Harry tried to kiss him later that night, he could stop him.

“No, Harry,” he said softly and though he couldn’t hear it he knew his words were slightly slurred. “I want us both to be sober for our first kiss. I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

Harry pouted adorably when he realized Draco wouldn’t let him kiss him but still nodded. Perhaps the logical part of his brain wasn’t completely inebriated yet. Instead he went back to cuddling Draco like an oversized koala. Draco was glad they already were at his flat and not still out in a bar or he might have died of embarrassment. Here, in the privacy of his living room it was actually quite cute.

Before Harry could try to kiss him again Draco took his glass away.

“I think you’ve had enough of this. You should get some sleep.”

“’m not tired,” Harry mumbled. “You’re not my real mom, you can’t tell me to go to sleep.”

Draco chuckled. Harry would probably be embarrassed by this conversation if he remembered it in the morning

“Well, I own this flat and the Firewhiskey you’ve been drinking, though. And I don’t want you to throw up all over my couch,” he argued. When he looked at Harry to get an answer he saw that he had already fallen asleep, still wrapped around Draco in a tight hug.

Draco sighed in defeat and tried to gently pry himself from Harry’s grip without waking him up again. He wasn’t very successful.

“Where’re you going?” Harry asked sleepily when Draco had freed himself and had just gotten up.

“I’ll take away the alcohol, get you a blanket and then fall into my bed,” Draco explained patiently. Harry looked too cute pouting with wide green puppy eyes that looked to be a second away from crying for him to deny an explanation.

“Don’t you want to sleep with me?” Harry asked, still pouting. “Don’t you like me?”

Draco smiled at him fondly. “I like you very much, Harry, but I don’t think it is a good idea for us to share a bed tonight. Maybe sometime soon.”

Draco couldn’t help himself. He kissed Harry’s forehead softly which had Harry scrunch up his nose endearingly and complain about the unfairness. “You just kissed me, why can’t I kiss you?”

Not able to argue the logic, Draco allowed him to kiss his forehead as well. Harry did and left another Mark Draco looked forward to seeing in the mirror later.

Then Draco hurried to pick up the bottle of Firewhiskey and their glasses before something else could happen he wasn’t prepared for. He came back two minutes later with a soft blanket under his arm and draped it around Harry who was already asleep again, lying on his side with his glasses digging into his face.

Draco resigned himself to the possibility that Harry would wake up again and carefully removed his glasses and placed them on the couch table. To his surprise, Harry stayed asleep. Draco then left as fast and as silent as he could, he didn’t want to jinx his luck.

Before he fell into his bed in his room, however, he stripped down to his underwear and, when he saw a Mark disappearing under it, pulled it off as well. Then he looked in the mirror.

The first Mark he noticed was a likeness of Harry’s lips, looking a little sloppy, on his forehead. His whole right side and a long strip across his stomach and back were green as well where Harry had clung to him, as were parts of his legs. The most curious part though, was the Mark close to his crotch. How he could have missed Harry touching him there, he had no idea. _Sneaky little shit_ , he thought fondly. After putting on a new pair of boxers and a shirt he finally fell into his bed, hoping he still had some Hangover Potion lying around.

 

When Harry woke up he was shocked to notice that he wasn’t in his bed in the flat Draco had insisted he buy after an especially draining sleepless night. He wasn’t in a bed at all. He lay on a couch, still in his clothes.

After a few minutes he had pieced the previous night back together – with the help of the sparkling silver Marks all over his body – and blushed furiously. He had acted like a foolish idiot with a crush the size of Russia - not that he wasn’t that. He had just hoped Draco wouldn’t ever witness him acting like it. Draco had surely laughed about his behaviour once he was out of the room.

Well, at least Draco hadn’t thrown him out - that counted for something, right? He couldn’t have been too annoyed by Harry’s koala antics. Harry decided to make breakfast for them both as a kind of payback for Draco’s hospitality.

 

The food was almost done when Harry heard the door to the kitchen open and close again and the silent pitter-patter of naked feet on tiles.

“You can cook?” Draco asked surprised, his voice rough from sleep.

“Yes,” Harry answered curtly. He didn’t want to talk about how he learned it, especially not this early in the morning.

Apparently Draco had heard the reluctance in his voice, or he simply wasn’t interested, because he didn’t ask for it and just put a vial next to the stove.

“Drink this for the hangover,” he advised.

Harry had gotten so used to headaches during the war; he hadn’t even noticed his head hurt until now. He smiled at Draco in gratitude and downed the foul-tasting potion in one go. Next, Draco handed him a glass of tap water.

“Thank you.”

Harry took a little longer to drink the water and once the taste of the potion had been washed off his taste buds he checked the food again. It was done so he picked up the pan and divided it equally onto two plates he had already set out.

Draco carried the plates and two sets of cutlery to the table while Harry cleaned both the stove and the pan with a swish of his wand before he followed Draco into the adjacent dining room.

The dining room was light and airy and the sun was shining inside through the windows that covered one wall almost completely. Harry liked it instantly and found himself already looking forward to sharing more meals with Draco in this room.

“Thank you for making breakfast,” Draco said after a few minutes of silence. “It tastes great.”

Harry blushed brightly. He wasn’t used to getting compliments, least of all for his cooking. “It’s just scrambled eggs with some ham I found in your fridge,” he tried to play it down. “I can do that almost in my sleep.”

“Well, I couldn’t,” Draco said. “I would’ve probably just eaten half a bowl of cereal. I’m surprised you even managed to put together a meal with the few things in my fridge.”

Harry could feel his blush getting even more prominent if that was even possible. He surely looked like a tomato by now.

“I’ll get you to accept compliments sooner or later,” Draco said and it sounded like a promise – one Harry didn’t mind him keeping in the least.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just realized the timeline is a little wonky. Let's just pretend the Final Battle happened sometime in April :D

Suddenly, it was a week before Harry’s birthday. Draco hadn’t even really noticed how much time had passed since he and Harry had initially met. A few weeks ago they had celebrated Draco’s birthday at the orphanage a few days after Draco’s actual birthday. He had been surprised when all the kids had worn party hats and Lilian had brought in the cake she had made for him. He had been touched – even more so when Harry had handed him a present and admitted that he had helped with the preparations – and he had vowed to himself to remember all of the children’s birthdays and get them small presents, delivered by owl when he couldn’t bring them in person.

Now, though, he had other pressing matters to attend to. What to give Harry?

Draco hadn’t put off the delicate necklace with a dragon pendant once since Harry had gifted him with it and Draco had asked him to clasp it around his neck, and not only because Harry had told him the pendant was a permanent portkey that would bring him to Harry whenever he needed it to. His cheeks still turned red when he thought about the brief touch of Harry’s fingertips against his skin. He hadn’t been able to see the Mark but the place where Harry had touched him had felt pleasantly warm the whole day.

For Harry’s birthday he needed to find an equally meaningful present. It was hard to find one, though. He knew Harry got hundreds of owls from his adoring fans, and his friends and adoptive family buried him in presents that often weren’t expensive but rather meaningful. He needed to find something special, something personal, something that would show Harry without a doubt (he was still quite dense at times after all) how much he and his friendship meant to Draco.

Not able to come up with something suitable, Draco gave up for the time being and sat down at his desk to draw. It was a pastime he had taken up some time during his third year at Hogwarts and now, after the war, it calmed him to watch the rough sketches turn into finished, coloured drawings by his own hands. He drew a lot and he was proud to say he got better with every drawing, every sketch. While he was colouring the petals of the water lily he had drawn, he had a sudden flash of inspiration.

Harry still tortured himself for all the deaths he couldn’t prevent during the war, didn’t want to forget about anyone who died on his side under any circumstances. Draco couldn’t bring those people back to life but he could give Harry something to remember them with in a way that wasn’t as masochistic as Harry’s approach. He went to the closest art store, a small shop that was usually deserted whenever he got there but still seemed to make enough money to keep the business going. Draco appreciated that a lot. Less people around always meant less hostile looks and whispering behind his back for him. To his relief the only customer in the store just left as he arrived and he could purchase a roll of drawing paper and a new set of pencils with minimum discomfort.

When he got back to his flat he started drawing almost immediately. First he drew Colin Creevey like he looked back when he was in his first year at Hogwarts with a bright smile and a camera almost bigger than his face. Then Sirius Black, Professor Lupin and everyone else he knew had died in the war and could remember the face of. Including Harry. After all, he had died as well. Harry had volunteered this particular piece of information when Draco had asked him about another speculative article on what had happened between Harry and Voldemort during the Final Battle.

He still wasn’t finished with even the sketch when his stomach started growling and he left his art room to make himself some quick lunch from one of those containers Pansy had introduced him to where one only had to add a certain amount of water and heat it.

The second the concoction hit his tongue, he missed Harry’s cooking. Harry had cooked for him a few more times after the initial breakfast and, upon taking in the state of Draco’s cooling cupboard, had brought him some meals he had pre-cooked for Draco to just heat up. He had eaten the last helping of Mac and Cheese with broccoli and chicken yesterday and all that was left in his kitchen was this… insult to all cooks in the world. Damn Pansy. Or maybe, damn Harry. After all, he had eaten this pretty regularly before Harry had started cooking for him and hadn’t really complained.

 

It was almost ten in the evening on the day before Harry’s birthday when Draco could finally put his signature on the drawing. He sighed in relief, wearing a satisfied smile. It definitely was his best work to date. Now he could only hope Harry would like his gift and Draco wouldn’t make his grief worse with it.

 

Harry was a nervous mess on the morning of his birthday. Today was the day his two worlds would collide, both Draco and his friends would be in his flat at the same time. He had told his friends about being soulmates with Draco of course and that they were spending time with each other and had been for more than two months now but no matter how much Harry told them about Draco, at least Hermione and Ron still didn’t like him in the least. Harry could understand that, after all, they had hated each other in school, Draco had taunted them every chance he got to get a rise out of Harry. But they had encountered _Malfoy_ at school; they didn’t know _Draco_ behind the mask created by and for his father. He could only hope they would at least give him a chance and act civil.

 

In the afternoon, Draco was the first to arrive. Harry wasn’t sure whether that was a good or a bad thing. One the one hand, he wouldn’t get bombarded with annoying questions because no matter how tactless Hermione was sometimes, she wouldn’t question him about his friendship with Draco when Draco could possibly overhear them. On the other hand, which worried him, he couldn’t really ease his friends into meeting Draco.

Deciding to simply lean back and let the day progress as it was, Harry made a pot of tea and talked with Draco about the children at the orphanage and the clothing line Pansy Parkinson wanted to sell and listened to Draco complain about how Harry had ruined canned food and fast food for him with an impish smile.

 

The Floo was located in the living room where they were sitting and conversing and when it roared to life the second time that day Draco disappeared into the kitchen in a flash. Harry was glad Draco let him greet his friends alone but he was also worried what it meant that Draco fled the confrontation.

He greeted Neville and Luna both with a hug and they wished him a happy birthday. After offering them seats and tea he left the room to join Draco in the kitchen.

“Luna and Neville just arrived,” Harry told Draco in a gentle voice. “Do you want to join us in the living room?”

Draco shook his head vehemently.

“Why not?” Harry took one of Draco’s hands in his, a little hurt by his straight-out refusal. It seemed he didn’t even want to _try_ to get along with Harry’s friends.

“I don’t want to ruin your birthday,” Draco mumbled, his eyes fixed on the mug of tea he was still holding.

“You won’t ruin my birthday,” Harry tried to assure him but he could see he wasn’t really successful. “They promised me to be civil as long as you are civil.”

“It will still be terribly awkward,” Draco insisted. “Just think about everything my family and I have done to them. I let the Death Eaters into the school who killed Weasley’s brother. Lovegood was held hostage in my family’s manor. I called Granger the M-word and my aunt carved it into her skin. My aunt also tortured Longbottom’s parents into insanity. My father gave the Weasley girl the diary that made it possible for Voldemort to possess her. Even without all that, I have still bullied all of you throughout Hogwarts. They have no reason to like me or even be civil to me, Harry. I think it’s better if I just go.”

“No,” Harry said and gripped Draco’s wrist tightly when he tried to leave. Draco looked at him with a raised eyebrow, obviously expecting convincing arguments. Harry hoped they would be.

“I want you to be here, Draco. I wouldn’t ask this of you if it wasn’t important to me. You’re my friend, just as much as they are, if not more. I want to celebrate my birthday with you. I promise, if this ends badly I won’t ask you to try to get along with them again.”

 

Draco sighed deeply. He wanted to leave, he really did but he also didn’t want to disappoint Harry. Harry thought it would work out somehow and he wouldn’t change his mind until the opposite was proven true.

“I don’t think they will believe me even when I honestly apologize to them,” he still tried again to sway Harry.

“They will at least tolerate you if you apologize to them. Gryffindors admire courage and apologizing for the things you did to your enemies takes a lot of courage. I won’t _let_ them hurt you, Draco.” Harry’s last sentence sounded completely honest and almost pleading and it was Draco’s undoing.

“Okay,” he agreed. “I’ll stay as long as it takes for one of them to insult me.”

 

It took way longer than Draco had expected for the first of Harry’s friends to insult him. Luna had accepted him as Harry’s soulmate with open arms and a smile and Longbottom hadn’t been able to utter a word for a long time after Draco had apologized to him. In fact, he was still silent when Granger and the two youngest Weasleys arrived and Harry had disappeared into the kitchen to make more tea.

Ronald Weasley (somehow he had to keep the two Weasleys apart in his mind so full names it was) greeted Draco with a scowl, Granger managed a small nod and Ginevra Weasley even shook his hand to everyone’s surprise.

Ginevra scowled at her friends’ reactions. “What?” she snapped. “Is it so weird for me to want to greet my best friend’s Soulmate civilly? Harry told us he has changed and I choose to believe him until he’s proven wrong.”

Draco had to admit then that he already liked Ginevra. He had a feeling she always meant what she said and she didn’t back down from it easily even when her brother complained: “But Ginny…” She just shot him a disapproving look and to Draco’s surprise he shut up.

Using Ginevra’s defence of him as an opening, Draco took the chance to apologize to Harry’s three closest friends.

Before the silence that followed could get too uncomfortable Harry returned with a fresh pot of tea in his hands and a wide smile on his face.

 

Harry was relieved to see Draco and Ron weren’t at each other’s throats yet but he wasn’t completely blind and could see that the atmosphere wasn’t friendly either. He hoped it wouldn’t boil over at least for a few hours.

To Harry’s dismay it didn’t take quite that long for things to go downhill. He had just finished his piece of cake when Ron went to inspect the presents Harry had received so far and seemed to notice something was off judging by the frown on his face.

“Where is your present, Malfoy?” he asked. “Did you think you weren’t good enough friends yet for you to give Harry something?”

Harry sighed and shot Draco an apologetic look. Draco nodded and then calmly replied.

“No, not at all. I just haven’t given it to him, yet. It’s quite personal and I’d rather give it to him in private.”

Harry smiled at Draco in reassurance. He didn’t know what Draco wanted to give him but from what he had told him he’d prefer to open his present when it was only Draco who was around to see his reaction. Not to mention how much he looked forward to spending more time alone with Draco.

Hermione nodded, understanding clear in her eyes but Ron wasn’t convinced as easily.

“Something personal? What could be so personal that Harry doesn’t want to share it with his best friends?”

_A dildo_ , Harry thought and couldn’t keep a grin off his face. Draco caught his eyes and raised an eyebrow. _Later_ , he mouthed and Draco nodded.

Thankfully Ron didn’t notice his amusement; he was too focused on Draco.

“That’s not what I said,” Draco argued. “Harry can show you the present whenever he wants to. I just think it would be better for it to be just the two of us when I give it to him.”

“So you think we wouldn’t approve of it?”

“I don’t know,” Draco admitted. “I don’t know you well enough for that. But I’m quite certain Harry would prefer to have as few people as possible around when he opens it.”

Ron looked at Harry for confirmation and to Draco’s relief he let the topic go when Harry smiled and nodded but he continued to watch Draco with distrust.

After half an hour of silent judgement, it was too much for Draco and he snapped, still trying his best to stay civil.

“Weasley, if there’s something bothering you about me, please tell me,” he asked with a forced smile.

“Why would I, ferret?” Ron snapped back.

“Because it makes me tense which in turn makes Harry tense and that in turn makes it hard for everyone else to enjoy this birthday party,” Draco explained. He was still calm on the outside but on the inside he was raging. How dare Weasley not trust Harry, his best friend, when he told him Draco had changed? Was he that protective of Harry? Was he convinced people couldn’t change?

Ron seemed to accept Draco’s reasoning, if only grudgingly, and fulfilled his request. “I don’t trust you, ferret, especially not around Harry. He is much too trusting for his own good. I’d prefer his soulmate were anyone else than a slimy snake but I can’t have that so I will do everything to protect him from hurt.”

Draco swallowed and nodded. He could understand Weasley’s reasoning. That didn’t mean he liked it. He wanted to be the one who protected Harry from hurt and definitely not the one his friends thought he needed to be protected from. He didn’t want to stay here any longer, with the accusing glances of most of Harry’s friends, he had taken their distrust long enough and he had told Harry he would only stay until they insulted him. Weasley had called him ferret and while that wasn’t a traditional insult it still hurt him to think about the ferret-incident in their fourth year.

He caught Harry’s eyes and looked at him for a few seconds before he spoke.

“I should go,” he told Harry though he knew everyone else in the room could hear him as well. “I’ll give you your present later.”

Harry nodded and approached him. He took one of Draco’s hands and squeezed it for a second. Draco squeezed back, wanting Harry to have a Mark on his hand as well.

“I’ll Floo you when they’re gone,” Harry said so low Draco was sure he was the only one who could hear it. Then he pushed him gently in the direction of the hearth.

Draco smiled at him gratefully and with a last swish of his robes he stepped into the flames and disappeared from Harry’s living room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How do you think Harry will react to Draco's present?


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More orphanage action! Tell me how you like it.

Harry asked his friends to leave as soon as it was polite, earning him a disapproving scowl from Ron and a cheeky smile from Ginny. He could only fully relax again when, a minute after he had firecalled Draco, his Floo roared to life and Draco stepped through again.

Harry wished Draco had stayed but he could understand why he didn’t, so he was a little surprised when instead of telling him off for his stupid optimism, Draco practically fell into Harry’s arms.

Draco didn’t say anything to explain his strange behaviour but Harry didn’t mind his clinging in the least so he just wrapped his arms around him as well and waited for him to talk.

“I’m sorry,” Draco finally said after a few minutes of silence, sounding honest and vulnerable. “I shouldn’t have left… Weasley didn’t even throw any real insults at me but… I couldn’t take it anymore. I don’t blame you for your optimism about your friends’ reactions, I really don’t, but I did tell you I would ruin your birthday.”

“You didn’t,” Harry insisted. He pushed Draco away from him a few inches so he could look at him properly. “Ron did. He’s very protective of me, always has been and sometimes that protectiveness together with his jealousy takes an ugly form. You just defended yourself, there’s nothing wrong with that.”

“Thank you,” Draco said. He sighed relieved and smiled at Harry.

Harry smiled back. “So what is this controversial present everyone was discussing earlier?”

Draco chuckled. “No, no, no. First you tell me what had you grinning like a lunatic.”

“I didn’t grin like a lunatic!” Harry complained.

“Like a madman, then?” Draco raised a mocking eyebrow.

“No, more like someone with a dirty mind.”

Draco laughed out loud. “You, a dirty mind? I’m surprised. I thought you were an innocent virgin. Do tell then.”

“Well, I thought about what you might give me that I wouldn’t want my friends to see and the first thing to come to mind was a dildo.” Harry was quite proud of himself for being able to keep a straight face this time around and delighted in the laughter Draco was unable to contain.

“Imagine Weasley’s face,” he gasped still laughing. “And Granger’s always so stuck up I think she might faint.” His imaginations sent him into another burst of laughter and Harry had to smile too when he thought about his friends’ possible reactions.

“I have to disappoint you, Harry,” Draco said after his laughter had died down again, trying to sound concerned. “But I won’t give you a dildo… today."

“I’m actually relieved,” Harry admitted. “I think _I_ might have fainted then.”

Draco blushed. “You might still faint… or punch me in the face…”

“Just give it to me,” Harry encouraged, “before you think of more worst-case scenarios. I’m sure it can’t be that bad.”

Draco pulled a tiny scroll out of his robe pocket and gave it to Harry after restoring it to its original size with a tap of his wand. He refused to meet Harry’s eyes when he took it from his hands and opened it.

Harry gasped audibly when he saw what Draco had gifted him.

“Draco, I…” he stammered. Tears gathered in his eyes and rolled down his face.

Draco put one of his hands on Harry’s shoulder and rubbed his back with the other.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I’ve overstepped my boundaries.”

“No,” Harry insisted, tears still running down his cheeks. “It’s a perfect present, I’m just overwhelmed. Thank you, Draco.”

“You’re welcome.” Draco hugged Harry from behind and lay his head down on Harry’s shoulder. “You really miss them, don’t you?”

“Yes…” Harry said with a sigh. “But you’re right. This is a much healthier way of remembering them. And I’m more than glad we’re alone right now."

Harry could feel Draco smirking then.

“Told you. Why don’t you put this away now and sit down on the couch and I make us some tea?”

Harry just nodded. He didn’t trust his voice, overwhelmed by Draco’s thoughtfulness and his own sadness as he was. He rolled the scroll up again and put it on the mantle. Then Draco led him to the couch, his hands soft and caring on Harry’s shoulders. When Harry had sat down he left the room to prepare what to Harry seemed to be the seventeenth pot of tea that day.

Draco came back a few minutes later with two big steaming mugs of tea in his hands.

“Here.” He handed Harry the bigger mug and curled up next to him with his hands wrapped around the other. “I put in a dash of milk and two spoons of sugar. Now, do you want to tell me about them?”

Harry found that he did. Draco hadn’t demanded answers like his friends often did and it made him feel infinitely more at ease.

They talked well into the night and when Draco wanted to leave around midnight, Harry asked him to stay the night in the guestroom.

 

The next morning Draco woke up with a smile on his lips and the scent of Harry’s cooking in his nose. He decided he could easily get used to this. They hadn’t shared a bed but the message behind Harry’s offer was clear. He _wanted_ Draco here. He wanted him in his flat, he wanted to cook breakfast for him, he even wanted to tell him about his pain and that was what Draco treasured the most.

He stretched luxuriously on the wide bed and then got up to join Harry in the kitchen, still wearing the pyjamas Harry had given him.

 

Harry loved cooking for Draco and not only because of the expressions he made while eating. Draco seemed invested in Harry’s cooking like no one else had before. He asked Harry which spices he used and how he got the sauce so creamy. He always complimented at least one aspect of the meal and it slowly made Harry more comfortable with compliments because he could always see Draco meant them, and he also told Harry what he could improve in his meals in a friendly way that managed to prevent Harry from feeling bad about it not being perfect.

 

Their breakfast was interrupted by the arrival of two owls. One perched on Harry’s shoulder holding out its leg to him, and the other on Draco’s.

Harry took the letter from the owl and instantly recognized the green ink his address had been written in. It was a letter from Hogwarts. Draco gasped, apparently having realized it as well.

After he had read the letter Harry looked up and saw Draco still hadn’t opened his.

“Go on, open it,” he encouraged him with a smile. “I promise it’s nothing bad.”

Draco nodded, looking a little less hesitant and carefully opened the letter.

“Independent study…” Draco muttered after a few seconds of silence and a small smile spread on his face. “I won’t have to go back…”

Harry couldn’t help but smile at the relief he heard in Draco’s voice. It seemed he had wanted to go back to Hogwarts to finish their schooling even less than Harry had.

The letter told them there wasn’t enough space to accommodate the students who couldn’t graduate during the war but they offered to give them the professors’ curricula for the year so they could study the subjects they wanted to on their own and sit the NEWTs with the seventh years at the end of the school year.

“You’re relieved as well,” Draco remarked when he looked up from his letter at Harry.

“Of course I am. I’m not ready to go back, yet, Draco. Too much happened there for me to be able to learn properly at Hogwarts. I even debated to not go back but I couldn’t think of anything else to do so I kind of just resigned myself to it.”

Now that he knew he wouldn’t have to go back Harry had in fact already started thinking about what it might be like to study with no teachers breathing down his neck and no lessons to attend. He could study alone or maybe with Draco – hopefully he was a better study buddy than Hermione or Ron – and he could do it wherever he wanted to. He could study in his flat, practise spells in a sunny park or revise topics lying on Draco’s couch. It might sound cowardly to some to be relieved about not having to go back to Hogwarts but he needed distance from the war and the grounds it had been waged on more than anything right now.

 

Draco was a little surprised by Harry’s reaction to the letter. Harry had told him Hogwarts had been his first real home, it was a little strange to see him relieved he wouldn’t have to go back but he could understand Harry’s explanation. He had similar reason for not wanting to go back, after all. He didn’t want to see the damaged castle and he wanted to be shunned by everyone for his role in the war even less. If he was honest with himself, he had to admit it was kind of reassuring to see he wasn’t the only one who felt that way about Hogwarts and even the hero of the story didn’t want to revisit the battlegrounds quite yet. It made him feel less like a coward.

 

Two days later Harry and Draco flooed to Diagon Alley. Their letters containing the NEWT curricula had arrived earlier that day and Draco had asked Harry whether he would accompany him to buy the books their professors had recommended.

Harry had been prepared to do his shopping alone as his relationship with his two longest friends was still a bit strained from the birthday disaster but he was happy to go with Draco. On their way to Flourish and Blotts Draco told him he had also gotten a letter from the ministry that morning. It had contained the time and location of his trial.

Harry sighed. Draco hadn’t been tried with the other marked Death Eaters days after the Final Battle so he had foolishly hoped he wouldn’t be tried at all. He should have known the Ministry wouldn’t let anyone who had done something remotely Dark walk away without punishment. They had to prove they were _Light_ and _good_ after all.

“I will testify for you,” Harry promised Draco just before they entered the book store. Draco stared at him with wide eyes.

“Harry, you don’t have to…” he tried to argue. “I don’t think it will make a difference. They know what I did and I deserve to be punished for it.”

“You deserve to be punished?” Harry asked outraged, attracting the attention of the shoppers around them. “You deserve to be punished for completing a task set by Voldemort under the threat of death?” The crowd gasped and Draco shrank away from Harry’s harsh words. Harry had known they would hurt them but they had to be said.

“You were underage when you committed those crimes, Draco,” Harry’s voice was soft again, soothing, and he placed a hand on Draco’s arm. He really didn’t want to fight with him about this, especially not in public. “You were given those tasks because Voldemort was sure you would fail and you only performed them because he would have killed you and your family otherwise. They shouldn’t punish you for wanting to stay alive. In my eyes you’re not at fault, Draco. I will testify for you and do everything in my power to make sure you’ll get pardoned and if that’s not possible that you will get the lightest punishment possible.”

Draco showed a hesitant smile and Harry could see a sliver of hope in his eyes. “Thank you.”

Smiling Harry followed him into Flourish and Blotts.

 

After they had bought the recommended books and a few more for both further research and enjoyment, they decided to go to the orphanage again.

“Waco!” Adrian exclaimed from the back of the room when he spotted Draco and Harry entering the playroom. Usually Draco would correct his pronunciation immediately but this time he and Harry were distracted by a girl they hadn’t seen before in the orphanage. She sat on her own in a corner, her legs pulled up to her chest.

“That is Alexandra,” Lillian said from behind them. “She arrived this morning. She told me she ran away from home because her father hit her.” Draco winced at the mention of the abuse. His father had often knocked him over the head with his cane during his childhood and Lilian’s words brought those memories up again. One look at Harry showed him he was in a similar predicament.

They shared a look and then both slowly approached Alexandra. They sat down a few feet away from her. She lifted her head a little from her knees and observed them. “Are you here to take me back?” she asked with fear in her voice after a few minutes.

“No,” Harry gently assured her. “We’re here to play with you and the other children.”

Alexandra nodded once, apparently believing him. It took a few more minutes until she spoke again. She pulled a battered looking teddy bear out from under her shirt and showed it to them.

“This is Tubbs.”

“Hello, Tubbs,” Draco greeted the bear. “I’m Draco and this is my friend Harry.”

Alexandra scrunched up her nose in confusion. “Why are you named dragon? There’s nothing frightening about you.”

Draco looked offended but Harry just laughed.

“Don’t underestimate him,” he said when he had calmed down again and just a smile remained on his face. “While he can’t breathe fire his words can sometimes be just as hurtful.”

Alexandra raised one of her eyebrows in such a perfect imitation of Draco that it was uncanny; especially because Draco was pretty sure she hadn’t seen him doing it before. Not one to be outdone, though, he raised his own eyebrow as high as it would go. Harry was laughing again next to him but he chose to ignore it as much as possible. He had a competition to win, though he wasn’t quite sure what the competition actually was.

 

The rest of the afternoon continued in a similar fashion, Alexandra didn’t say much but they could see she was warming up to them slightly. The other children mostly kept their distance from them; maybe they sensed Alexandra needed Harry’s and Draco’s attention the most right now.

Only when it approached evening, Adrian slowly walked over to them and when he wasn’t sent away, sat down in Draco’s lap. Draco smiled down at him, Adrian had grown attached to him during their first visit already and Draco couldn’t deny the small boy had melted his heart.

“Alexandra, this is Adrian,” he introduced him to her and again Alexandra just nodded.

“Dis Waco,” Adrian added.

“My name is, Drrraco, munchkin. I already told that Alexandra earlier but thank you for introducing me again.” He kissed the crown of Adrian’s head and then focused his attention on Alexandra again.

“Asanda,” Adrian repeated, sounding proud.

“Almost,” Alexandra said and smiled at him. “You need to work on your _r_ sounds.”

“Yes, Asanda,” Adrian said in a serious voice like he knew what she was saying and completely agreed with her.

 

Draco and Harry were both smiling brightly when they left the orphanage again around dinner time. It had been a thoroughly successful and enjoyable day and neither had thought about Harry’s friends or their reaction once during their time spent together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to write this chapter. I hope you enjoy it.

Draco’s trial went down almost without a hitch. After Harry’s testimony and a long discussion he was sentenced to fifty hours of welfare work and six months of house arrest. With a smirk the judge had assigned Harry to watch over Draco’s house arrest. It was probably intended as additional punishment as was the requirement to do at least twenty hours of his welfare work at the Remus Lupin Orphanage but neither Draco nor Harry was inclined to tell them how wrong that assumption was.

 

Harry’s first action as Draco’s Ministry-approved guard dog was to come over to Draco’s flat that evening and bring a bottle of red wine to celebrate.

“Harry,” Draco greeted him with a bright smile and a tight hug. Harry was already looking forward to the resulting marks that would cover his whole front. “Thank you so much. I don’t think the trial would’ve turned out this well for me without your testimony.”

Harry grinned. “I told you so.”

Draco punched him lightly. “Shut up. I was possibly a little pessimistic about the outcome of the trial.

“A little?” Harry laughed loudly. “ _A little_ doesn’t cover it. You were worse than I was in Fifth Year and that’s saying something. Now, let’s toast to my optimism.”

They sat down on the couch in Draco’s living room and Harry poured some wine into the glasses Draco got for them.

“To Harry James Potter’s optimism,” Draco teased and raised his glass.

“Prat,” Harry muttered but still raised his glass alongside Draco’s.

“What? You wanted to toast to your optimism. So I do.”

“Just shut up and drink.”

 

“What will I do for the next six months? I’ll lose my mind. I can’t stay here or at the Manor for months,” Draco complained when his glass was half empty. “And you can’t come over every day and drink with me, either.” He made a joke of it but Harry could hear the uncertainty in Draco’s voice. He could understand it; he wouldn’t like to be confined to one flat or even one manor for months, either. But he wouldn’t let Draco spend the next few months wallowing in self-pity.

“Has anyone ever told you you’re a drama queen?” he asked Draco. “You have _me_ as your guard-dog and not some stuck-up, Malfoy-hating Ministry official. I won’t let you lose your mind or die from boredom.”

Draco frowned. “I’m still essentially trapped here or at the Manor. You can do nothing about that.”

“That’s not quite true,” Harry intervened. “I talked to the judge after your trial to find out what you are allowed to do during your house arrest and he told me I can take you out once a week as long as you don’t carry your wand and I am with you at all times. You also have the welfare work at the orphanage to look forward to. And on the days you’re not allowed to go out you won’t be alone here either. I’ll come over as often as possible, be it to study for our NEWTs or just to spend time together. I’ll also teach you to cook so you won’t have to eat pre-made meals any longer.”

Draco frowned. “You don’t have to do all that for me, Harry,” he insisted. “I don’t want to burden you with this.”

“Draco.” Harry sighed. Why didn’t he understand Harry _wanted_ to do this for him? “It’s not a burden for me. I wouldn’t have offered it in that case. I want to spend time with you and not just because you’re my soulmate but because you’re funny and easy to be around and my _friend_. It’s what friends do for each other.”

The frown still didn’t disappear from Draco’s face. “It’s not what my friends in Slytherin would do,” he pointed out.

Harry took Draco’s hand in his and smiled when it immediately turned green. “Last time I checked I wasn’t in Slytherin even though the Sorting Hat wanted to put me there.”

For a few heartbeats, Draco just stared at Harry. Then “You could’ve been in Slytherin?”

“Yes. The Sorting Hat said Slytherin would help me on the way to greatness. But I had just met a spoiled brat who had been sorted into Slytherin and everyone around me had told me about all the Dark wizards who had been in Slytherin so I told the hat to put me anywhere but in Slytherin.”

 

 _Harry could’ve been in Slytherin_. Draco was stunned. Maybe, if he hadn’t been so arrogant, Harry could’ve been sorted into Slytherin. But no matter how much Draco would’ve liked for Harry to have been a Slytherin he couldn’t deny he had done well in Gryffindor. From what he knew about Harry’s childhood Draco felt like Harry had really needed the loyal friends he had found in Gryffindor. Judging by his own experience those weren’t easy to find in Slytherin. He wasn’t even sure _he_ could’ve been a loyal friend as his loyalty had been first and foremost to his family and had only switched to Harry in the last moment. He told Harry as much.

“Your friends weren’t loyal to you?” Harry actually seemed to be shocked.

“Do you see any of them here?” Draco asked back.

“Well, no, but…”

“They were only loyal to me as long as they could profit from it,” Draco explained. “I always helped Vince and Greg with their homework so they wouldn’t fail their classes and Pansy was only around me because I let her pretend we were in a relationship.”

“So… she wasn’t your girlfriend? You two always seemed so close. And back in Sixth Year you seemed to enjoy her petting your hair.”

Draco chuckled. “Well, that was only because I love it when someone pets my hair. It had nothing to do with her.”

“Is that so?” Harry teased with a smile.

When Draco just shifted and lay down with his head on Harry’s lap, Harry looked confused.

“I thought you might want to try it out for yourself,” Draco explained. His voice was light and teasing but he still feared he might have crossed a line they weren’t ready to cross quite yet. But Harry smiled at him, soothing his worries, and started petting his hair.

 

The next day Harry had arranged for Andromeda and Teddy to come over to Draco’s flat. A few weeks ago Draco had told him he had started to reconnect with his aunt and how much he adored his cousin after Harry had mentioned Teddy being his godson. He thought spending a few hours with them would lift Draco’s spirits further.

Andromeda and Teddy stepped out of the Floo just after lunch. The second Teddy saw Draco his hair changed to a pale blonde that almost matched Draco’s own hair colour. His eyes shifted to match Draco’s as well but then he spotted Harry and his eyes turned green instead.

Harry couldn’t help the gasp that escaped his throat. Teddy now looked like he could be their son. For a moment he couldn’t help but feel disappointed they were both men. Harry’s biggest wish had always been to have a family, a family that loved him and was tied to him by blood, and he realized now he could probably never have that. Draco and he would probably never have a child who shared both their genes.

Draco noticed his smile had taken on a sad tinge and took Harry’s hand in his to give it a reassuring squeeze.

“We’ll talk about this when Andromeda left, okay?” he whispered and Harry nodded. Then Draco let go of Harry’s hand again to take Teddy, who was already trying to wiggle out of Andromeda’s arms.

“Teddy seems to like both of you a lot,” Andromeda opened the conversation after she had sat down on the couch facing the hearth. “His appearance usually only changes when he’s very emotional.”

Draco smiled brightly. “We love you, too, Teddy Bear.”

 

When Andromeda and Teddy left again it was already time to make dinner. Harry started talking while he showed Draco how to cut the potatoes.

“As long as I can remember I’ve always wished for a family. Once I was at Hogwarts the Weasleys made a great surrogate family but they still weren’t tied to me by blood. It’s not just because family is important in the Wizarding World either. I think it’s more that people have told me all my life how familial love is unconditional and I want that.”

“Harry.”

Harry reached for another potato but Draco grabbed his wrist before he could grab it. Then he took the knife from Harry’s hand and pulled him into a hug.

“There are ways for two wizards to have children who share their blood,” Draco assured him. “We’ll look into it once we’re ready for that step if that’s what you want.”

“There are?” Harry asked, not quite ready to believe it.

Draco smiled at him. “Of course there are. While wizards can’t do everything with the help of magic they can still do a lot of things Muggles can’t.”

“Is that so?” Harry teased. “And can they do everything Muggles can without using their magic?”

“Judging by your smile, they can’t,” Draco deadpanned. “But I’m sure I can at least cut these potatoes into even pieces without using my magic.”

Draco could. He slid the pieces into the simmering soup with a bright smirk on his face.

“Brilliant!” Harry exclaimed. “You mastered the easiest part of cooking.”

Draco frowned but Harry didn’t acknowledge it. Instead he continued to explain the next step.

Draco sighed. He had a feeling cooking would be even harder to excel in than Potion making and he wouldn’t be able to apply most of his Potions expertise. What had he agreed to?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so glad I finally finished this chapter. I hope you enjoy it.

The next day it was already time for Draco’s first hours of welfare work. Even though he already knew Lilian and had spent countless hours with the children in the past few weeks he was nervous. He wondered whether Lilian had told the children about his past and how they would treat him if she had.

The second he stepped into the play room where most of the children were gathered he realized he shouldn’t have worried. As always Adrian shouted “Waco!” and toddled over to him. He hugged Draco’s legs excitedly and looked up at him with his big doe eyes. “Up!” he demanded and the remaining tension bled from Draco’s shoulders. He picked Adrian up and whirled him around.

When he had sat Adrian down again Alexandra approached him and hugged him as well.

“Do you have to go to prison? Are you here to say goodbye?”

Draco felt a pang in his chest. “No, I don’t have to go to prison,” he assured Alexandra. “Why would you think that?”

Alexandra hid her face in his stomach but not before he could see a blush appearing on her cheeks.

“I saw a picture of you in the newspaper when Ms Argent was reading it,” she mumbled. “After breakfast I took the paper to my room and read the article. It said you had to go to court because you have done evil things. But I don’t know if that is true. You’re not evil, not like my… other people.”

“I have done a lot of terrible things, that’s true,” he admitted and to his surprise instead of letting go of him Alexandra only hugged him tighter. “And I expected to go to prison for them but Harry convinced the Wizengamot that I didn’t deserve such a harsh punishment. According to him I also did a lot of good in the end and helped end the war. So now I only have to stay at my house for the next six months and help Ms Argent care for all of you every week for a few hours.”

“But you already did that before the judge told you to,” Alexandra pointed out.

“You’re right, that’s true. But the Wizengamot doesn’t know that. They thought it would be a fitting punishment. It would certainly have been a good punishment for my father and most of the Wizarding World thinks I’m entirely my father’s son.”

Alexandra frowned. “So, is your father coming here as well?”

Draco shook his head. “No, we don’t have to worry about that. He was shipped to Azkaban a few months ago already.”

“You’re not sad about that?” Alexandra seemed honestly surprised about that, which in turn surprised Draco because hadn’t Lilian told them Alexandra had run away from home because her father had abused her?

“Not really, no. My father was not a good person and not a good father either. A lot of the bad things I did in my life I did because of him, either because I wanted to make him proud or because I wanted to keep him and my mother safe.”

Alexandra seemed to be uncomfortable with the topic and Draco just wanted to apologize when she smiled again. “Do you want to go play with Tubbs?”

Draco smiled back at her. “I’d love to. Shall we join Harry and Adrian?”

 

In the meantime Adrian had brought Harry over to a big box full of building blocks. After he had played peacefully with the blocks for a few minutes he asked Harry to do some magic. Harry, not able to resist his puppy eyes, cast _Wingardium Leviosa_ on one of the blocks still in the box and carefully let it levitate over to the small tower Adrian had built.

“Where should I put it?” he asked just as Draco and Alexandra arrived in their corner.

“Asanda decide!” Adrian exclaimed when he noticed them.

Alexandra smiled warmly at him. “I think it should go here,” she decided and pointed to the highest point of the tower. “Is that a good place?”

Adrian nodded excitedly and Harry carefully placed the block at the top of the tower. It didn’t collapse and Adrian laughed and clapped.

 

When they wanted to leave again a few hours later, Alexandra held Harry back. Harry told Draco to wait for him outside and turned around. He crouched down so they were face to face.

“Is something wrong?” he asked gently.

“It’s just…” she hesitated. “Thank you for keeping Draco out of prison. Only bad people are in prison and I don’t think he’s a bad person.”

Harry smiled. “I don’t think he is, either. He did a lot of bad things during the war but he was under duress. Now his father can’t control his life any longer and he can do what he wants instead of what his father expects from him.”

A small smile appeared on Alexandra’s face. “Can I hug you?” she asked, still hesitant.

“Of course.”

Her smile grew even wider and she hugged him as tightly as she could with her thin arms.

 

Draco waited for Harry right outside the orphanage. As he had nothing else to do his mind started wandering and he wondered what Alexandra might want to tell Harry. To be completely honest, he was a little scared. There were so many things Harry could tell Alexandra about him that would make her at least dislike him and he really didn’t want that. For once he had something that wasn’t tainted by his father and he didn’t want it to become tainted by his past. He knew Harry was his soulmate and his Gryffindor traits would probably keep him from going behind Draco’s back in that way but Draco hadn’t been sorted into Slytherin because he trusted people unconditionally. There was still a small part of him that was convinced this was all a big conspiracy to humiliate him.

“You can stop worrying now.” Harry’s voice pulled Draco from his thoughts just seconds before Harry wrapped his arms around him from behind him. “Alexandra just wanted to thank me for keeping you from going to Azkaban.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, Draco. Alexandra likes you already and I definitely won’t discourage her from that.”

Draco relaxed a little at that. Harry was a terrible liar so he would believe him for now. “I like her, too,” he admitted.

 

After more than a month of house arrest Draco had gotten so used to having Harry around almost constantly that he was immediately worried when he didn’t wake up to the scent of breakfast one Saturday morning. Harry had taken to staying the night during the weekends and had taken over Draco’s kitchen to make sure he didn’t survive only on cereal so it unsettled Draco to wake up in complete silence.

Was Harry not up, yet? Or maybe he wanted to introduce Draco to the secrets of cooking breakfast today so he couldn’t start cooking before Draco was up. Or what if… but no, Harry wouldn’t do that, would he? He wouldn’t just leave without saying a word because he’d had enough of Draco’s inability to cook or his pathetic whining because he just wanted to leave his flat for more than a few hours at a time, would he?

Draco sighed. He wouldn’t find out what had happened unless he got up. He pulled on a shirt and went to find Harry.

 

A few minutes later Draco was quite sure Harry wasn’t in his flat. Several of his things were still strewn around, though, so Draco confidently eliminated the worst case scenario. But where had Harry gone? As far as Draco knew he didn’t have a job except playing guard dog for his supposed nemesis and he hadn’t patched up things with the other two thirds of the Golden Trio either. Was he spontaneously paying Andromeda a visit? Teddy was his godson after all. But wouldn’t he have taken Draco along in that case?

With another sigh Draco decided to try to make himself some breakfast to keep his mind from creating any more possible or impossible scenarios. After he had burned his second egg he gave up though, and just made himself a simple bowl of cereal.

It was only after he had sat down at the kitchen table that he saw a letter addressed to Harry. Was this why Harry had left?

Not wanting to eat milk-soaked cereal he finished eating before he took a closer look at it. If Harry had just left it lying there he surely wouldn’t mind if Draco read it.

The letter was from Granger, at least her neat signature was at the bottom of the parchment. Draco leaned back to read it.

 

_Dear Harry,_

_I want to apologize on both Ron’s and my own behalf._

Draco scoffed. If this was an apology for their insults on Harry’s birthday it was extremely late. And shouldn’t they be apologizing to him and not Harry in that case?

_Ron shouldn’t have gotten so defensive about a simple present but Malfoy shouldn’t have provoked him either. You know their families’ history isn’t the best and Ron is very protective of you. You should have known it wouldn’t go down well._

_I won’t condone Ron’s actions but I understand why he acted like he did. We just don’t want you to get hurt, Harry, you have to understand that. I hope you can forgive Ron and we can still be friends. After all it wasn’t entirely his fault and I’d hate for someone like Malfoy to tear us apart._

“ _Someone like Malfoy_ ” Draco couldn’t deny reading that hurt. But it was good to know they hadn’t intended to apologize to Draco at all. He guessed it was fair, though. He had bullied them for years after all and one simple apology wouldn’t make them change their minds about him. He had simply hoped it would bring them a step closer to accepting him as Harry’s soulmate.

_Would you meet us for breakfast at the_ White Hare _? I miss you and I’m sure Ron does, too._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

Draco wasn’t sure whether he should laugh or cry. Harry was having breakfast with his friends and there were countless possible outcomes. He just hoped they wouldn’t convince Harry he was the root of all evil.

He just wanted to get up and contemplate his life in his bedroom (Malfoys didn’t _sulk_ ) for the rest of the day when he noticed another parchment on the table which had probably been covered by the letter before. He recognized Harry’s atrocious penmanship so he picked it up.

 

_Draco,_

_I hope you have read Hermione’s letter. If not, feel free to do so._

Draco had to smile. So Harry had left the letter on the table deliberately. Sometimes he really was more Slytherin than Gryffindor.

_I left to have breakfast with her and Ron, though not, as you might think, to reconcile. You’re not at fault for Ron’s outburst on my birthday and I won’t let them blame you for it. I don’t think they will apologize to you anytime soon, though, if ever._

_I hope I’ll be back for lunch._

_Love,_

_Harry_

 

Draco smiled. With just one note Harry had acknowledged and soothed one of his biggest fears – at least for the time being. He decided to get some school work done so he wouldn’t have to think about what Harry might discuss with Weasley and Granger before he came back and hopefully told him about it.

 

Draco had just decided to attempt to make lunch because he was getting hungry when Harry stumbled out of the Floo looking exhausted. One of these days Draco would really have to show him how to do it gracefully or at least without losing his balance. Harry already wasn’t the most graceful person without the Floo network complicating it, after all.

“How did it go?” he asked after he had helped Harry up and spelled his robes clean.

“I don’t really want to talk about it…” Harry muttered.

Draco pulled him into a hug. “That’s okay. I’m here to listen to you once you’re ready to. Will you teach me some more of your cooking skills in the meantime to get your mind off it for now?”

Harry just shrugged. “Sounds good to me.”

 

Together they went into the kitchen and Harry showed Draco how to properly prepare and mix the ingredients. It didn’t escape Draco’s notice that Harry did so with a lot more body contact than necessary. Draco didn’t mind, though, on the contrary, he already looked forward to all the Marks he would be covered in at the end of the day, but it also worried him. There had to be a reason why Harry was so tactile all of a sudden and Draco was almost sure it had to do with the people he’d had breakfast with.

To his immense relief, Harry started talking after he had put the lasagne into the oven and set a timer on his wand.

“Thank you for thinking of this. It really helped relax me and gave me more time to think about what happened this morning so I can hopefully tell you about it now without wanting to throw things around or my magic going haywire again.”

Without commenting on what he had just said, Draco took Harry’s hands in his and pulled him back into the living room. There he deposited Harry on the couch and sat down next to him, close enough for their thighs to be touching.

“Now you can tell me what happened.”

Harry swallowed and leaned his head on Draco’s shoulder.

“I had just turned on the stove to get a start on breakfast when an owl arrived. I thought it was for you so I let it in and hoped it didn’t require an instant reply. But it was addressed to me and the owl stayed even after I took the letter from it. I read it and sent Hermione a reply to tell them I would meet them. I didn’t mention their apology at all.

“When I arrived at the café Hermione rushed over to hug me and told me she was glad I accepted their apology and hadn’t let you manipulate me.”

Draco groaned in frustration. He hoped Harry would keep his distance from his supposed friends a little longer because he was starting to like them even less than he had at Hogwarts.

“Don’t worry,” Harry tried to soothe him. “I told them I didn’t accept the apology and shouldn’t be the one they apologized to in the first place.”

“Let me guess, they didn’t like that.”

Harry shook his head and his hair tickled Draco’s neck.

“Not at all. Hermione said she didn’t even notice you were uncomfortable, she had just apologized for what she had thought had made me send them home that day. Ron told me that even if you had been upset he wouldn’t apologize for how he felt.”

Draco rolled his eyes. “I didn’t have a problem with how he felt. It was more a problem with his attitude and his choice of words.”

Harry took one of Draco’s hands in both of his and squeezed it once. “I know that. I tried to tell Ron as well but he would have nothing of it. He said you’d just have to get thicker skin. After that they started to pester me about looking after you. Apparently it’s a conflict of interest because I don’t want you to go to Azkaban. They also explained to me that soulmates don’t have to be romantic as though I haven’t read a single word on the topic since I found out you were my soulmate. At that point I’d had enough of their lectures and asked them why they can’t just be happy for me. Usually friends of the soulmates even organize a party celebrating the match because it’s such a big deal in the Wizarding World but they’re just completely against it.”

Draco was surprised. He hadn’t expected Harry to know about the Soulmate Celebrations. They weren’t exactly a secret but Hogwarts didn’t teach about them either because it was such a rare occurrence for Soulmates to find each other while they were still at school. And while he had begun teaching Harry more about the Wizarding World they hadn’t yet talked about soulmates.

“How do you know about the celebrations?” he asked gently.

Harry blushed. “I did some research. It turns out I’m pretty good at that as long as I’m interested in the topic I’m looking into.”

“I’m glad you’re so interested in it,” Draco said and couldn’t keep a happy smile off his face. It was always good to hear he wasn’t the only one who was invested in making it work between them. “So, how did they react to your question?”

“I don’t know…” Harry admitted. “I got up and left before they answered and I’m not sure whether they would have answered if I had stayed.”

“I think that was the right thing to do,” Draco said and kissed his cheek.

Harry chuckled. “Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me forever to even start writing but I'm finally done now. I hope you like it :D

A few days after Harry had had breakfast with Weasley and Granger, Draco was woken in the middle of the night by his Floo Alert. He had installed it the day after his trial to make sure he knew whenever a Ministry official flooed over unannounced to check on him.

When he went into the living room, it wasn’t the face of a Ministry official greeting him, though. Instead Lilian’s head was visible in the middle of the flames. She seemed anxious so Draco hurried to kneel down in front of the hearth.

“Lilian, what happened?” he asked worried.

Lilian gave him an apologetic smile. “Draco, it’s good to see you. I apologize for calling this late. I woke you, didn’t I?”

“You did but don’t worry about it. I’m sure you have a good reason.” Draco hoped nothing bad had happened to any of the kids. In the weeks he and Harry had visited the orphanage all of them had definitely grown on him.

“I do. Alexandra is asking for you. She woke up from a nightmare about half an hour ago and can’t fall asleep again. Could you please come over? I know you’re still on house arrest but if the Ministry thinks this is unreasonable I will talk to the Minister myself.”

Draco smiled. He was more than glad Lilian was on his side because it seemed like she would do anything to make sure the children in her care were safe and comfortable.

“Please tell Alexandra we’ll be there in five minutes. I just have to wake Harry.”

Lilian smiled back at him. “I will do that. And, Draco?”

“Yes?”

“I’m very glad you and Harry visit regularly. Both the children and I enjoy your presence a lot.”

A blush spread on Draco’s cheeks. “I enjoy coming very much as well and I think Harry does, too.”

“Yes I can see that whenever you come over. You both light up when you see the children. But you should go now or the five minutes are over before you even woke Harry.”

Draco shook his head ruefully. “Yes, right. I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

 

When the flames had turned orange again Draco got up from the floor and hurried out of the room to wake Harry. It turned out that was unnecessary. Harry already was awake and Draco almost ran into him in the hallway.

“Woah, Draco!” Harry exclaimed and took a step back in surprise. “What are you doing up? You look worried.”

“Harry,” Draco replied when he had caught himself again. “I actually wanted to wake you. I just got a Floo call from Lilian, Alexandra had a nightmare and is asking for me. Can we go to the orphanage?”

Harry smiled at Draco and pulled him into a hug. “Of course we can. I told you, I’m not your jailer.”

Draco knew that, of course he did, Harry never made him feel like a prisoner or even caged, but he was a Slytherin and it was still better to be safe than sorry.

“Thank you,” he said.

“You’re welcome.” Harry squeezed him a little tighter before he let go of Draco again and followed him to the Floo.

 

At the orphanage they arrived in a small room they had never been in before as they had always apparated to the doorstep before. Lilian was sitting in an armchair opposite of the hearth waiting for them. She embraced them both in greeting.

“Harry, Draco, thank you for coming over. I’ll show you to Alexandra’s room. I hope you can console her so she can fall asleep again.”

“I’m glad you called us, Lilian,” Draco told her again. “And I’m sure Alexandra appreciates it as well.”

“I would hope so,” Lilian said over her shoulder as she left the room. Draco and Harry hurried to follow her. “This is not exactly following protocol.”

Lilian led them through the familiar hallway separating the big playroom and the dining room on one side from the kitchen and Lilian’s living quarters on the other side and up a set of stairs that led to another hallway. There she stopped in front of the third door on the left that had light streaming out from underneath it. She knocked twice but apart from a loud sniffle there was no answer.

“Alexandra?” Draco asked gently through the door. “Can I come in?”

A few seconds the door opened and Alexandra flew out and into Draco’s arms that he had held out reflexively.

“Shh, I’m here now,” he soothed and gently petted her hair.

“Draco,” Harry said. Draco nodded once to show him he had heard him but he kept his attention on Alexandra. “I’ll stay out here, just get me if you need me.”

Draco nodded again and then scooped Alexandra into his arms careful not to hurt her. He sat her down on the one bed of the two in the room that looked slept in and then closed the door behind them.

“Is there something I can do for you?” he asked Alexandra gently and knelt down a few feet away from her so she wouldn’t feel threatened.

“Hold me?” Alexandra asked hesitantly, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Of course.” Draco gave her a small smile and when she smiled back it widened. He sat down on the bed. “Come here,” he encouraged her and Alexandra slowly shuffled over to him and curled up on his lap. Draco wrapped one of his arms around her again and went back to petting her hair.

 

“Draco?”

Draco didn’t know how long they had sat there like that when Alexandra’s voice pulled him out of his musings.

“Yes, love?”

Alexandra was silent for a few seconds and when she finally talked, Draco was sure she didn’t ask her initial question.

“Why did you call me _love_?”

Draco smiled at her and kissed her forehead. “Because I love you and I want you to know. Do you want me to stop?”

Alexandra’s eyes widened in surprise. “No, please don’t stop. I think… I think I love you back.”

“I’m glad. Now, was there something else you wanted to ask me?”

Alexandra looked away from Draco’s face and started fidgeting with the collar of his pyjama top.

“Alexandra?” Draco coaxed gently.

“It’s… I just…”

“Hey, shhh. Take a deep breath and then ask whatever you wanted to ask me. I promise I won’t be mad.”

Alexandra’s head snapped up and she looked at Draco again.

“How did you…”

“Just good intuition,” Draco explained and kissed Alexandra’s forehead again. “Now take a deep breath and please tell me what’s bothering you.”

“I just… I saw some of your bruises earlier…” Alexandra said and started fidgeting with Draco’s clothes again. “Draco… is Harry hurting you?”

“Bruises? I don’t…” Draco realized then what she might have seen. It was unexpected but it was the only explanation. “I’ll get Harry, okay? Then we can show you the markings you can see are not bruises.”

“Okay…” Alexandra agreed a little hesitantly. She looked like she wasn’t sure whether she should be relieved or afraid.

“Harry hasn’t hurt me since we made our peace,” Draco promised.

“Pinky promise?” Alexandra asked and held out her pinky finger.

“Pinky promise,” Draco replied and wrapped his pinky finger around Alexandra’s. That seemed to reassure her because she crawled out of Draco’s lap so he could get Harry.

 

“Harry?” Draco asked, peeking out of the door. “Can you join us for a minute?”

“Sure.” Harry got up from the probably conjured armchair and followed Draco into Alexandra’s room. “What can I help you with?”

“Alexandra saw some of the marks on my skin and was worried you were hurting me. Can you show her how they appeared to reassure her?”

Harry smiled relieved. “Of course. Would you pull up your right sleeve, Draco?”

Draco did and showed it to Alexandra so she could see there were no marks on it, yet. Harry then gently wrapped his hand around Draco’s wrist and let go of it again after a few seconds. The resulting mark was a bright green, like all the others Draco found on his skin on a daily basis.

Alexandra gasped. “So, the marks appear wherever Harry touches you?” she asked, visibly eager to learn more. Draco nodded. “But why don’t they appear when I touch you?” she asked further and sounded a little disappointed.

“They only appear when soulmates touch each other,” Harry explained calmly.

Alexandra looked at Draco for confirmation. Draco nodded again. “Harry and I are soulmates. When I touch Harry, silver marks appear on his skin.”

“Can you show me?”

Draco smiled at Alexandra’s enthusiasm and then turned to Harry with one eyebrow raised in question.

“Oh, yeah, sure,” Harry hurried to say when he noticed Draco was waiting for a reply.

Draco chuckled and placed his hand on Harry’s collar bone that was peeking out of his pyjama top for a few seconds before he pulled back again.

“That’s so neat!” Alexandra exclaimed and when Draco looked back at her she was smiling brightly. “Can you tell me more about it?”

“Of course, but right now we all need sleep. Harry and I can bring a few books on it when we come over next time.”

“Can’t you stay the night and tell me more tomorrow morning?” Alexandra pleaded.

Draco wouldn’t mind that but it wasn’t his decision to make so he looked at Harry for input again.

“I don’t see a problem with that but we should ask Lilian as well. You can wait here, I’ll go and ask her really quick.”

“Thank you, Harry,” Draco said and kissed Harry’s cheek. The resulting mark made all three of them smile.

 

Harry came back a few minutes later with good news. Draco could stay in Alexandra’s room for the night and Harry would sleep in the free bed in one of the boys’ rooms.

Alexandra jumped up from her perch on her bed and hugged Harry tightly. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Harry hugged her back. “You’re welcome. Now go to sleep. It’s late, or rather early.”

“Okay. Good night, Harry.”

“Good night, love.” Harry leaned down and kissed Alexandra’s cheek.

 

“Where do you want me to sleep?” Draco asked when Harry had left the room.

“Can you… um… sleep in my bed with me?” Alexandra was looking down at the floor and fidgeting with her pyjama sleeves and seeing her like that broke Draco’s heart. He hurried over to her and wrapped her in a hug again.

“Of course I can. But don’t you think your bed is a little narrow for two people?”

Alexandra looked at her bed and nodded.

Draco smiled at her and pulled out his wand. “Well, then it’s a good thing Harry gave me my wand.” Draco flicked his wand and a second later the two beds had joined into one. “Is this better?”

Alexandra looked up at Draco with wide eyes and just nodded.

“Good, now let’s go to sleep.”

 

When Draco woke up the next morning he was disoriented for a few seconds but when he remembered what had happened during the night and saw Alexandra peacefully sleeping with her head tucked into his neck he relaxed back into the pillow and just enjoyed the silence for a while.

A few minutes later there was a knock on the door.

“Yes?”

The door opened a crack and Harry stuck his head into the room. “It’s time for breakfast.”

Draco smiled at Harry. “All right. Give us five minutes.”

 

Waking Alexandra wasn’t quite as easy as Draco had hoped. He first tried calling her name but she only scrunched up her nose and pressed her face deeper into his neck. He tried stroking her arm next but it had similar results. Then he had another idea. He started tickling her and to his surprise it worked. Alexandra giggled and then finally opened her eyes.

Draco greeted her with a smile. “Good morning, Alexandra.”

“Good morning,” she replied and smiled back. “That was a really good way to wake me up. Lilian always has problems getting me to wake up, maybe you should tell her about it.”

Draco chuckled. “I think I will.”

 

Together they went down into the dining room that was quite big but still overcrowded with twelve children and three adults standing around and sitting around the table that took up half of the space.

“Good morning, Draco and Alexandra,” Lilian greeted them but didn’t look up from the eggs she was currently frying. “Get a plate, find a chair and then serve yourself.”

Draco and Alexandra did as she suggested. They found two chairs next to each other and opposite from Harry and Adrian and sat down. Draco, always the polite guest, took a bit of everything that looked tasty while Alexandra piled her plate with scrambled eggs.

“Waco!” Adrian exclaimed when he saw him as he looked up from his plate filled with apple slices and bread cut in cubes.

“Good morning, Adrian,” Draco greeted him. “Did you sleep well?”

Adrian nodded enthusiastically. “Hay sleep in my… woom.”

“Harry slept in your room? That’s great. I slept in Alexandra’s room.”

“Asanda bad dweam.” Adrian nodded again but this time his face was as serious as it was possible for a toddler.

“That’s right. Alexandra had a bad dream. Did Harry tell you that?”

“Yes. Hay say you hug Asanda. I can hug Asanda?”

“You’ll have to ask Alexandra about that.” Draco smiled at Adrian and when it seemed like he didn’t have any other questions he went back to his breakfast.

“Asanda?” Adrian asked just a few seconds later.

“Yes, Adrian?” Alexandra replied and smiled at Adrian.

“I can hug you?”

Alexandra chuckled. “Yes, you can hug me. But we have to finish eating breakfast first. You know what Lilian says.”

“Bekfast most impotant meal of day,” Adrian said proudly.

“That’s right,” Lilian said and ruffled Adrian’s hair as she came up behind him and slid the eggs she had made on a half empty platter. “Does anyone need anything else? Draco, do you want coffee?”

“No, thank you, Lilian. I’m more of a tea person.”

“Very well.”

When none of the kids asked for anything else Lilian sat down in the one remaining chair and started breakfast as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is completely from Alexandra's point of view. I hope you like it.

When Alexandra was done with her breakfast she got up and took her plate to the sink like Lillian had taught her on her first day here. She already wanted to go to the playroom to draw until Harry and Draco were done as well but when she turned to go she saw Adrian walking toward her and she remembered he had wanted to give her a hug.

Adrian put his mostly empty plate on top of hers and cleaned his hands on his trousers before he held out his arms and asked “Hug?”

Alexandra smiled and took a small step towards Adrian. “Yes, you can hug me.”

Adrian’s answering smile was almost blinding and with childish enthusiasm he wrapped his arms around Alexandra and squeezed her as tightly as he could with his short chubby arms.

He let go of her again after a few moments and looked at Alexandra with his head cocked to the side.

“Asanda better?” he asked.

“Yeah, I am. Thank you.” Alexandra didn’t have the heart to tell him she had been feeling good ever since Draco had cuddled her during the night and hadn’t really needed his hug. And the hug _had_ made her feel better, just a different kind of better than she had needed after her nightmare.

Together Alexandra and Adrian went to the playroom where Alexandra sat down at the drawing table and Adrian went over to the building blocks.

 

Alexandra had just finished her drawing when Draco and Harry came into the playroom, both carrying big books. She hid her drawing underneath a pile of parchment they could use for drawing but Harry had already seen it.

“What did you draw?” he asked gently and sat down opposite from her even though the chair was much too small for him as it was built for kids.

Alexandra shrugged and tried to look casual. “Just something I dream about.”

“Okay. Do you want to show us what you drew?”

“No!” she said a little too fast and a little too loudly to seem unaffected by it.

“That’s okay,” Draco said and gently covered her hand with his. “Do you want to learn more about Soulmates now?”

“Yes, please,” Alexandra said and smiled at Draco. “Are all the books you brought about Soulmates?”

“Yes. But there are not a lot of solid facts known about them so most of this is just theories,” Draco explained to her. “Harry also has a book that focuses mostly on the traditions that exist in the Wizarding World surrounding Soulmates.”

“Is there also something about people like me in it?”

“I don’t know,” Harry said. “When I read them a few weeks ago my focus was on other things. But we can look for that now with a searching spell.”

Draco shook his head. “For a searching spell we would need a specific word or phrase we want to look for. I think we’ll need to do this the old-fashioned way.”

Alexandra giggled when Harry groaned.

Harry looked up at her. Alexandra could tell he was trying hard to show her he wasn’t seriously mad at her even though he was frowning and she really appreciated it.

“It’s all right. Laugh at my misfortune.”

 

“I think I found something!” Draco exclaimed a few minutes later. By that time some of the other kids had sat down on the floor around the drawing table and were watching Harry and Draco avidly.

“What did you find?” a girl – Alexandra thought she was named Robin – asked.

“A passage about people with the same ability Alexandra has,” Draco answered. Alexandra wasn’t quite sure whether he knew there were children sitting all around him. He seemed to be very absorbed in the book he was reading. “Apparently there used to be a few of them working for the Ministry until about a decade ago.”

“What did they do there?” Alexandra asked.

“For example they helped during trials when wizards or witches asked for divorce because they had apparently found their Soulmate. They would watch the claimed soulmates touch and then tell the Wizengamot whether they were indeed Soulmates and the reason for divorce was valid.”

“People did that?” Harry asked.

Draco looked up at Harry and Alexandra could see him roll his eyes. “Of course they did. It was basically the easiest way to get out of an arranged marriage.”

“But then why aren’t they working for the Ministry any longer?” Harry asked further. Alexandra definitely wanted to know that as well.

Draco shrugged. “It doesn’t say here but I’d guess it was because either the Ministry wasn’t satisfied with the work they did or the Soulseers, as they were called, didn’t like their working conditions.”

“Do you think there are still other Soulseers?” Alexandra asked timidly. She wasn’t quite sure whether she wanted to get to know some of them if there were others like her but even just their existence would make her feel better and not as other and alone as she had ever since she had found out about her ability.

Draco smiled warmly at her and she instantly felt more hopeful. “I’m sure of it,” he said. “Just because the Ministry doesn’t employ them any longer doesn’t mean they lost their powers or simply ceased to exist. I’m sure we will just have to look in the right places to find them.”

“I think I might know someone who is a Soulseer,” Harry said and Alexandra looked at him with wide eyes.

“You do?” Draco asked surprised before Alexandra could.

“It’s just a feeling but it wouldn’t surprise me if Luna was a Soulseer as well.”

Draco’s eyes widened for a second and then he smiled. “Lovegood? I can definitely see that. You should invite her to come here someday so Alexandra can meet her if she wants to.”

“Alexandra, would you want to meet Luna after we found out whether she is a Soulseer as well?” Harry asked gently.

“Luna nice?” Adrian asked from behind Alexandra’s chair before Alexandra could answer. Alexandra turned around and didn’t hesitate to scoot her chair back a little when Adrian waddled towards her and let him climb on her lap.

“Yes, Luna is very nice, Adrian,” Harry said with a smile. “She is a little eccentric but she is definitely nice.”

“What does ex… -centric mean?” Alexandra asked. She had heard the word before but it was usually in conversations she wasn’t supposed to hear so she couldn’t have asked what it meant then.

“Eccentric,” Draco corrected her pronunciation gently. “It’s a much nicer way of saying weird.”

Alexandra thought back to that one conversation she had overheard between one of her teachers and her… father. Her teacher had called her eccentric then, because she always hid somewhere in the classroom when it was time to go home. Maybe that had been an eccentric – a weird – thing to do. But back then all she could think of was that she just really didn’t want to go home.

“I’d like to meet her,” Alexandra decided then and forced a smile on her face so Draco and Harry wouldn’t worry about her, “even if she isn’t a Soulseer. I think I’ll like her.”

“Okay,” Harry said and ruffled her hair. “I’ll ask her to accompany us the next time she comes over.”

 

When Draco and Harry had left, Alexandra pulled her drawing out again and looked at it. She had drawn herself in the middle of the parchment and on either side of here stood Draco and Harry. Harry was holding Adrian. She had dreamed they could be a family.

Before she could lose herself in her daydreams Alexandra shook her head, rolled up the parchment with her drawing and went to Lillian’s office to ask her for a bit of tape. Once she had four small strips of tape hanging from the fingers of her left hand she went upstairs to her room and taped her drawing to the back of her closet. Another kid, Lucas, had told her none of the adults ever looked into your closet as long as you could dress yourself. It would be safe from everyone else’s eyes there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! I hope this chapter makes up for my long absence at least a little.   
> I almost cried while writing this last night so consider yourselves warned. There's feels to come.

The next week Draco and Harry brought Luna to the orphanage with them. They introduced her to Alexandra and to Harry’s relief Alexandra quickly warmed up to her and it didn’t take long for the topic of Soulseers to be brought up.

“Harry told me you are a Soulseer,” Luna said, and Harry had to smile when he saw Alexandra’s eyes light up with excitement.

“Yes. I saw Draco’s Marks last week and was worried Harry was hurting him because they look like bruises.”

Luna nodded. “Draco’s Marks do have a colour similar to bruises. I’m glad you could clear it up. Is there something you want to know about Soulseers? Maybe something you won’t find in any books?”

“I want to know everything,” Alexandra said decisively.

“Then I suppose we should start at the beginning,” Luna said and smiled at her.

Luna told them the first Soulseers had emerged at the same time wizards and witches had. For a while they had even been regarded as a third species alongside Muggles and Wizarding folk because they were too magic to be Muggle and not magic enough to be wizards but soon the Muggles decided they were more magic than they were comfortable with and most Soulseers began to only associate with wizards and especially with Squibs because they understood what it was like to live in a world full of magic with only a little magic in their bodies. Those who stayed in the Muggle world often helped Muggles, who had Soul Marks as well but didn’t have enough magic in them to see them, to find their perfect match.

Harry was distracted from the conversation when he felt someone tug on his trousers. He looked down and saw Adrian standing beside him.

“Hey Adrian,” he said quietly because he didn’t want to interrupt Luna. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

“That Luna?” Adrian asked, doing his best to keep his voice quiet as well.

“Yes, that is Luna,” Harry said and smiled at him. “Do you want to join us?”

“Yes, please,” Adrian exclaimed excitedly, forgetting to be quiet. It only took a second for the eyes of everyone around the table to be on them.

“All right,” Harry said and felt a blush spread on his cheeks under the scrutiny of Draco and Luna. He pulled Adrian on his lap and then turned towards them.

“Sorry, this little munchkin wanted to join us,” he explained and looking at Luna he added, “Luna, this is Adrian, the other kid who’s grown attached to us.” Then he turned toward Adrian again to finish up the introductions. “Adrian, this is Luna, one of my dearest friends.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Adrian,” Luna said and smiled brightly at him.

“Nice to meet you,” Adrian replied and buried his head in Harry’s shirt, suddenly shy.

When it didn’t seem like Adrian wanted to participate in the conversation any further, Luna turned her attention back to Alexandra and continued to tell her a little about some of the more widely known Soulseers. Harry had to gasp out loud when she mentioned Lily Potter almost in passing.

“My mother was a Soulseer?” he asked, surprise and awe mingling in his voice.

Luna smiled at him and covered his hand with hers. “She was,” Luna confirmed. “I should’ve known no one told you.”

Harry sighed. “I didn’t even know Soulmates were real until I did some research in Fourth Year and even then, I forgot about it again because I was researching ways to survive the stupid Tournament and Hermione thought the Marks might be a sign of some special power I didn’t know about until then or something like that.”

Luna shot him a look filled with sympathy, but Draco seemed straight-out shocked, which Harry couldn’t quite understand. Draco knew Harry had read up on Soulmates in the past few months and he at least had an idea of how little people had told Harry throughout his years at Hogwarts so why was he so taken aback by this admission that, in Harry’s mind, fit right in with everything else he had told Draco so far?

“Fu- no, there’s children here,” Draco censored himself. “You didn’t know until Fourth Year? I thought you were just looking up some details you forgot about.”

Harry just shrugged. He didn’t know what to say to that.

But it seemed Draco hadn’t expected him to answer because he continued talking almost immediately. “I’ll write Mother a letter asking for all the books on Soulmates we have at the Manor. I’m almost certain we even have a book chronicling some of the most famous Soulmates. My mother loves the whole concept of Soulmates even though she hasn’t found hers, yet. I could use a brush-up on the topic as well, so we can look through the books together if you want to.”

Harry smiled at Draco’s sudden enthusiasm. “Thank you.” Then he turned towards Luna again. “Do you know more about my mother?”

“From what I’ve heard she helped the few people who found their Soulmates at Hogwarts while she was there to at least talk to each other and of course she and your father were Soulmates which she had a hard time dealing with at first because, as I’m sure you know, he wasn’t exactly nice throughout most of their Hogwarts years.”

Harry nodded, comparing his mother’s and his own experience with Soulmates in his mind.

“Was there something else you wanted to know, Harry?”

Harry thought about it for a few seconds and then nodded. “Sirius… did he…?”

“Sirius’ Soulmate was Remus Lupin,” she told him, her smile turning sad at the edges.

“Oh,” Harry breathed and slumped into his chair.

“Hay sad?” Adrian asked with a small adorable frown on his face.

“Yes, Harry is sad, Adrian,” Draco said softly.

Adrian turned around to look at Draco but a second later he turned back towards Harry and asked, “I can hug Hay?”

Harry sniffed once, trying his best not to cry in front of everyone. “Yes, you can hug me, munchkin.”

Adrian’s frown morphed into a tentative smile and he wrapped his short arms around Harry as much as he could.

Harry hadn’t expected it but when Adrian hugged him he started to feel a little less sad and breathing became a little easier again.

“Thank you, Adrian,” he said, his voice thick with unshed tears. “That helped a lot.”

Adrian nodded like he had been certain it would. “My momma said hugs magic.”

Harry gave him a watery smile. “They are indeed.”

“Momma died in the war,” Adrian said so quietly Harry was almost sure only he could hear it and it broke Harry’s heart how innocent his voice sounded, like his mother was on an extended vacation and not… dead. “Did Sius and Hemus die, too?” he asked just as innocently, and Harry lost the fight against his tears and let them roll down his cheeks freely.

“They did,” he confirmed almost choking on his emotions.

Adrian wiped some of Harry’s tears with one of his chubby hands. “Why you cwying, Hay?” he asked like he honestly didn’t understand. “Lillian say dead people don’t want cwying.”

“I can’t help it,” Harry brought out. “I still miss them so much.”

Adrian didn’t say anything to that and just hugged him again. Luna squeezed his hand again and a few seconds later Harry felt another hand on his back – Harry guessed it was Alexandra’s – and saw Draco kneel down next to him and let him pull him into a hug as well.

For the first time in a while Harry didn’t think of the Marks Draco’s touch would leave on his body but instead on the warmth his touch brought and the warmth that flooded through him at the thought that while his family was dead he still had amazing friends, his own chosen family.

 

The next morning, Draco had had enough. It had been almost three months since Harry’s birthday and the fallout with his friends and while his moping hadn’t been too obvious until now – though obvious enough for Draco to notice, especially after the failed breakfast reconciliation – his lack of appetite that morning would surely be to everyone who bothered to even glance in Harry’s direction. Add to that Harry’s unexpected crying session the previous afternoon and it was high time to do something about it, Draco decided. He had hoped the problem would resolve itself over time but after three months he’d had more than enough of Harry’s subtle suffering. There was only one thing that made it difficult for him to turn his decision into actions. He would have to talk to Weasley and Granger and convince them he wasn’t a danger to Harry.

After breakfast Harry left to run some errands so the second he had left Draco’s flat, Draco sighed and resigned himself to his fate and the prospect of getting hexed to next Sunday. He had no idea where either Weasley or Granger lived and he was sure Harry wouldn’t have flooed to the Weasleys’ home – which for some reason was called the _Burrow_ – once a week if they lived there and he wanted to avoid them. However, it was also Draco’s only connection to Harry’s adoptive family so he had no choice but to call them through the Floo and ask how to reach out to Weasley and Granger.

 

“Thank Merlin Harry told me you might call,” Mrs Weasley said when she had recovered from seeing Draco in her hearth.

Draco blushed and smiled sheepishly. “Sorry for surprising you like this. But why would Harry think I might call you?”

“He said you might be looking for him,” Mrs Weasley explained. Draco gave her a small smile. Not only was he relieved Harry probably didn’t know anything about his reconciliation plans but he also felt a rush of affection at the thought of Harry telling his unofficial adoptive mother a Malfoy might call looking for him. “Are you?”

Draco shook his head. “No. I’m looking for-“ He hesitated for a second, not sure how to phrase it. _The other two thirds of the Golden Trio_? _His best friends_? _Ronald and Hermione_? “-your youngest son and his girlfriend,” he finally settled on.

“Oh. I thought Harry had a fallout with them. He told me when he came here a few days after his birthday. Did they make up again?”

“No, Harry doesn’t want to talk to them until they at least tolerate me as his Soulmate. But he’s not himself without them so I was hoping I could talk to them and at least reach a truce.”

“Well,” Mrs Weasley said looking a little uncomfortable. “I fear you’ll have to wait a few weeks to do that. Ron and Hermione are currently in Australia.”

“Australia?” So far this call was full of surprises for Draco.

“Yes,” Mrs Weasley confirmed. “They just left yesterday. They didn’t know yet when they would be back.”

Draco sighed. “All right. Thank you for telling me. I’ll see what I can do to at least cheer him up a little.”

To Draco’s surprise Mrs Weasley then smiled warmly at him. “You really care for him, don’t you?”

Draco felt a blush creep onto his cheeks. He had known for months that he cared for Harry more than he cared for almost everyone else but to have other people notice and point it out to him apparently still managed to catch him off-guard. It made him feel equal parts embarrassed and warm because on one hand he had learned to hide his feelings from a young age and other people reading him would always make him feel disoriented but on the other hand he _wanted_ people to know how he felt about Harry, especially people Harry was close to, so they might accept him as Harry’s Soulmate eventually.

“I do,” he told Mrs Weasley and if he looked a little smitten at the thought of Harry it would probably only help with the credibility of his statement.

“That’s good,” Mrs Weasley said and sounded like she meant it. “Harry needs more people who care about _him_ and not just the everchanging picture the public has of him. To be honest I was a little shocked at first when Harry told me you are his Soulmate but now I can see you’re good for him.”

“Thank you,” Draco said relieved. “Your approval means a lot to me and I’m sure to Harry as well.”

If Mrs Weasley was surprised by his gratitude she didn’t show it. ”You’re welcome, Draco. Why don’t you and Harry come over for dinner tomorrow? I’d like to get to know you better.”

“Well,” Draco said and scratched the back of his head – a habit he had most likely picked up from Harry because there was no way it was part of the Malfoy habits which were designed to not make one look nervous or unsure even if one was. “I don’t know whether I can come over. I’m still on house arrest and I don’t want to give those responsible for my case at the Ministry even more reason to hate me than they already have by stretching or breaking the rules.

“It wouldn’t be stretching the rules,” Mrs Weasley insisted with an easy smile. “Harry told me he made sure the Burrow was on the list of places you are allowed to Floo to with him.”

“Oh.” Draco felt off-kilter once again. It seemed Harry already trusted him more than Draco had dared to even hope for. Once again, a pleasant warmth spread through his body. “I’ll tell Harry you invited us, then.”

“Who invited us?” Draco jumped when he heard Harry’s voice from behind him and turned around to give Harry an offended look.

Harry smiled sheepishly at him. “Sorry, I thought you heard me.”

“Is that Harry?” Mrs Weasley asked.

“Hello, Mrs Weasley,” Harry said cheerily and sat down right next to Draco. “Did you invite us? Draco was too shocked by my appearance to tell me.” Draco frowned and shoved Harry playfully.

Mrs Weasley chuckled and Draco took the opportunity to tell Harry she had invited them to dinner.

“We’ll be there,” Harry said without even a second of thought.

“Brilliant,” Mrs Weasley said smiling brightly. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Draco and Harry had just enough time to say goodbye before Mrs Weasley’s head disappeared from the flames.

 

“Why are you back already?” Draco asked after they had gotten up from the floor and sat down on the couch instead. “I didn’t expect you for a few more hours.”

Harry blushed. “I might have been followed by a mob the second I stepped into Diagon Alley, so I left again as soon as I could.”

Draco chuckled. “Poor Chosen One. It must be so hard to be famous.”

“You’re such a prat sometimes,” Harry complained with a smile and shoved Draco just like Draco had done earlier with him.

There was no other way to react to that than to laugh so Draco did and to his relief Harry joined in mere seconds later. Maybe they would be okay until he could smooth things over with Harry’s friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is one monster of a chapter and I'm glad to be done with it to be honest. I hope you like it :D

Draco almost stumbled into Harry when he stepped out of the Floo at the Burrow because apparently Harry had decided the space directly in front of the hearth was the most comfortable to stand in.

“Harry?” Draco asked gently when Harry didn’t even seem to notice his arrival.

Harry still didn’t react, so Draco looked around him to find out what had him so shocked. He was greeted by the sight of countless colourful streamers and a large banner that said _Congratulations_ in big capital letters flashing in various colours. Now Draco could completely understand Harry’s shock because he was just as shocked, if not more so.

“Harry!” Ginevra exclaimed when she spotted them and ran up to them. Harry was startled back into movement when she hugged him.

“What… how?” he stammered.

Ginevra let go of him again and smiled brightly at him. “Mom held back with planning your Soulmate Celebration because traditionally the friends of the Soulmates take care of it but after Draco told her you were still on the outs with my idiot brother and his girlfriend she decided an impromptu celebration was in order.”

“I…” Harry didn’t manage to get another word out as in that moment two more redheads approached them at a pace only a little slower than Ginevra’s had been.

“Harry, Malfoy,” one started.

“It’s good to see you,” the other finished. Only then did Draco remember there was a pair of twins among the Weasley children. He blushed in embarrassment because really, how could he have forgotten about the Weasley twins?

“Guys, I think we broke Harry,” Ginevra said when Harry still didn’t move.

The twins chuckled. “He’s not broken, sis,” the left twin said.

“He’s just temporarily out of order,” the right one added.

 

“Harry?” Draco tried again while the Weasley siblings continued bickering.

This time Harry slowly turned around and looked at Draco, his eyes still impossibly wide.

“Did you know about this?” he asked.

Draco shook his head. “I didn’t even know this was a possibility.”

“You like it, though, right?” Harry asked, insecurity suddenly written all across his face.

Draco gave him a reassuring smile and leaned his forehead against Harry’s. “So far, I like it a lot. Maybe I won’t like it quite as much anymore once your family starts to interrogate me.”

Harry smiled at him, thankfully reassured. “I’ll tell them to tone it down if that happens.”

“Thank you. Now let’s go thank Mrs Weasley for this because I’m sure she was the one who planned it.”

“There’s no need to thank me, Draco,” Mrs Weasley said behind him. “It was an honour to be able to do this for the two of you.”

“Still,” Draco insisted and turned around to look at Mrs Weasley. “I didn’t even expect to get a Soulmate Celebration, especially not after Harry’s two best friends reacted so badly to me being his Soulmate. So, thank you, for accepting me as Harry’s Soulmate and giving us a Soulmate Celebration.”

Mrs Weasley gave him a bright smile and pulled him into a tight hug. “You’re very welcome Draco. And please, call me Molly.”

“I can do that, Molly,” Draco said once Molly had let go of him and he could breathe properly again.

“Good. Maybe you can teach Harry how to do it as well. But first, let’s have dinner. I hope you like chicken casserole, Draco.”

“I can’t say I’ve had it before, but it definitely sounds like something I might like.”

“That is a very good attitude to go into a meal with,” Molly said and led them to the dinner table that was already filled with the casserole and various side dishes.

George, Fred and Ginevra joined them just a minute later, still bickering, and with a pang in his chest Draco witnessed how much love there was between the Weasleys and he couldn’t help but feel a bit sad and jealous because he had never experienced that kind of unconditional love before. The love of his family had always come with expectations and conditions. Even his mother, as much as she had tried to undermine his father’s strict approach to raising a child, had still expected him to be the best at everything and scolded failure with harsh looks and demands to do better the next time.

Harry noticed his mood shift almost immediately and laced his fingers with Draco’s. It brought a small smile back to Draco’s face, not only because it felt good to know Harry was there with him but also because he realized he might be able to have that unconditional love he was longing for with Harry in the future.

“Thank you,” he breathed, hoping only Harry heard it. Harry smiled at him and squeezed his hand once, giving Draco the feeling that he knew what he was going through.

To Draco’s relief and silent surprise, dinner passed without any of the Weasleys even trying to interrogate him. Instead they asked him for his opinion on the various topics that came up at the table and some innocent questions about his house arrest and the work he was doing at the orphanage. For a few minutes he almost felt like he was part of this family and not just an outsider allowed to participate for one night.

 

After dinner Draco was approached by Ginny, which she had told him to call her after he had addressed her as Ginevra earlier. He looked around the room to see if Harry might be able to save him from this one-on-one, but he was currently in deep discussion with George and Fred.

“Don’t worry,” Ginny said. “I won’t rip off your head.”

Draco gave her a wry smile. “That is _very_ reassuring. Do I get to keep my appendages as well?”

Ginny pulled at one of his arms. “You seem to be very attached to them so, yes,” she deadpanned and startled a short laugh out of Draco.

“I’m starting to like you, Ginny,” he admitted because as he had learned with Harry, honesty was often the best policy when interacting with Gryffindors.

“You’re not so bad yourself, for a Malfoy,” Ginny said with what Draco had identified as her teasing smile on her face.

“I’m glad I can surpass the incredibly low standards my father has set. He makes being a decent person look very hard to achieve,” Draco shot back. It still felt weird to talk negatively about his father, but it was also freeing to be so honest.

“Harsh, Draco,” Harry said as he approached them.

“It is true, though,” Draco said and let his body relax a bit when he could feel Harry standing just an inch away from him.

“It is,” Harry agreed. “And I’m glad you’re making your peace with it. I was just surprised.”

Draco turned towards him with a cheeky smile on his face. “I live to surprise you.”

 

It was almost midnight when Draco and Harry Flooed back to Draco’s flat, both holding a parcel that Molly had shoved into their hands just a few seconds ago.

“I didn’t know presents were a part of the Soulmate Celebrations,” Harry said after he had stretched out comfortably on Draco’s sofa.

Draco shrugged. He picked up Harry’s legs and put them down again in his lap after he had sat down before he answered.

“They aren’t an official part. But some people treat the Celebrations like birthdays in that they give the Soulmates presents, so that’s probably what these are.”

“Oh, okay,” Harry said. “I thought there was maybe some kind of tradition behind it that wasn’t covered in the books I read.”

Draco shook his head. “No, I don’t think it’s anything like that. The Soulmate Celebration is usually quite casual. Most of the time it’s just the Soulmates and their friends getting together for a night to get to know each other and have fun.”

“Okay, good. That’s good,” Harry said and picked up his present from his lap. “Let’s open our presents, then.”

“After you,” Draco said. He wanted to see what Harry’s present was before he opened his, so he would have an idea what he might get before he opened it. He didn’t dislike surprises per se, but he preferred to go into new situations like this knowing as much as possible beforehand, so he wouldn’t be caught completely off-guard.

Harry looked at him confused for a second but then his curiosity took over and he inspected the small present instead. He turned it this way and that and then started unwrapping it. A few seconds later Harry pulled a small piece of wood that looked like part of a branch stripped of its bark out of the wrapping. It took Draco a moment to recognize what it was but when he did his mouth fell open and his eyes widened in shock. Even through his shock he could appreciate the irony of the situation, but he barely noticed when his present slipped out of his hands and fell onto his lap.

“I… that’s…” Draco stammered, too overwhelmed to form full sentences.

Harry reached out and took one of Draco’s hands in his. “What is it?” he asked gently and brushed his thumb over Draco’s hand in soothing circles.

“It seems our presents have significance after all,” Draco said when he felt calmer and was able to form coherent sentences again.

“What kind of significance?” Harry asked. He sounded almost worried now, but he didn’t stop his soothing movements which Draco was incredibly grateful for.

“The Soulmate Celebrations usually don’t coincide with meeting the parents, so I didn’t think of it. But it makes sense, of course.”

“Draco, I don’t understand what you’re trying to tell me. Can you please explain to me what you’re talking about? What makes sense?” The worry was almost tangible in Harry’s voice now and it was enough to shake Draco out of his overwhelming and slightly spiralling thoughts.

“Right, sorry,” Draco rubbed his forehead with his free hand to try and clear his head a little from his surprise and concentrate on what he had read in one of the books in the Malfoy library back when he had first learned about Soulmates. “Parents traditionally give their children and their respective Soulmates tokens like this to show their acceptation of the Soulmate. If I remember correctly they are created by pushing one’s magic into a small piece of wood or metal. You might be able to feel the magic in it when you close your eyes and concentrate on it.”

“So, it’s a good thing?” Harry asked. Draco was relieved that his voice sounded more hopeful than worried now.

“It’s a very good thing,” Draco assured him with a smile and squeezed his hand. “Try to feel the magic.”

“Okay.” Harry wrapped the hand that wasn’t holding Draco’s around the token and closed his eyes. A second later a bright smile spread on his face. “It feels warm… loving. Like one of Mrs Weasley’s hugs.”

Harry sounded so content and downright happy, Draco didn’t have it in him to mock him about it or even remind him Molly had asked him to use her first name.

When Harry opened his eyes again he was still smiling and playfully nudged Draco’s leg with his foot. “Open yours,” he encouraged.

Draco pulled his hand out of Harry’s grip and then did as he had asked. Like he had expected, his token looked very similar to Harry’s, the wood only a shade or two darker and the shape slightly different but when he wrapped his hand around it he felt the same things Harry had described. He let a giddy smile overtake his face and when he opened his eyes and looked at Harry he saw it mirrored on his face.

 

The morning of October 31st was once again a late one for Draco and the memories of the previous night still rested comfortably at the forefront of his mind. He really hadn’t expected what was basically Harry’s adoptive family to be so accepting of him, especially not after both of Harry’s best friends had rebuked him so completely, and he was immensely thankful for it. It made him a little more hopeful that what he and Harry had could actually work out for them.

His good mood found an abrupt end however when he found Harry sitting at his kitchen table, almost looking like someone had killed his parents right in front- shit. Someone _had_ killed his parents in front of him, and today was the seventeenth anniversary of that day, Draco remembered just in time. Harry had every right to look so defeated and downright depressed.

“Harry?” Draco addressed him trying his best to make his voice sound comforting. They had both comforted each other a number of times in the past few months already but sometimes Draco was still unsure what the best way to comfort Harry was and now was one of those times.

Harry looked up at him and his eyes widened in surprise.

“Draco? I’m sorry, I didn’t think. I’ll leave, give me five minutes.”

“No,” Draco said with a soft but determined voice and gently wrapped his hand around Harry’s wrist. “You can stay if you want to. Is there anything I can do to help you?”

Harry let out a deep sigh and let his whole upper body slump onto the table. “I don’t know,” he said eventually. “Judging by how I’m feeling right now I won’t be a very pleasant person to be around today so maybe the best thing for you to do is to leave me alone?”

“Do you _want_ me to leave you alone or do you just not want me to be pulled down by your mood?” Draco asked.

Harry didn’t answer for a long time, so Draco made himself some cereal since it was obvious Harry was in no mood to cook breakfast and sat down opposite from him. If Harry didn’t know what Draco could do for him, Draco could at least keep him silent company.

Draco had already finished his cereal and was cleaning his bowl by hand, a habit he had picked up from Harry, when Harry spoke again.

“Thanks for staying.”

Draco allowed himself a small smile. “You’re welcome. Is there anything else I can do?”

“Yes,” Harry said decisively when Draco had sat down at the table again, his suddenly animated voice in stark contrast to how it had sounded just a few seconds earlier. “Stay here, I’ll be back in a minute.”

Draco was a little surprised by the energy that filled Harry’s voice and frame all of a sudden, but he didn’t comment on it. Instead he just watched as Harry Flooed to his own flat and came back a minute later with a big leather-bound book in his arms. He sat down on the sofa and placed the book in his lap.

“Do you want me to join you?” Draco asked when Harry hadn’t moved further for a full minute.

Harry turned around slowly, giving Draco the impression that his burst of energy had only been fleeting, and looked at him for long seconds before he answered. “I think that would be nice.”

Draco got up with a nod and approached Harry slowly like he would a wounded animal or a frightened child. He sat down next to him on the sofa just as slowly, careful to keep a few inches between them because he didn’t know whether Harry wanted physical contact at the moment and didn’t want to assume. Harry looked down at the space between them and then up at Draco.

“Can I lean against you?” he asked hesitantly like he already expected the answer to be a scalding “No!”

“Of course, come here,” Draco said, keeping his voice as soft as he knew how, clearly startling Harry with both his tone and his words.

“Thank you,” Harry breathed a few seconds later and huddled against Draco’s side.

“Can I put my arm around you?” Draco asked, always asking, never assuming, not in the state Harry was currently in. This was new territory for both of them and he wanted, no, needed Harry to be comfortable around him even if that meant sitting with his arm wedged between their bodies for an extended period of time.

“Yes,” Harry said and pulled his body off Draco’s again, so Draco could free his arm more easily. Once Draco had done so he slung it around Harry’s shoulders and gently guided him to lie against his side again. After some more seconds of adjusting and finding the most comfortable position Harry let out a deep breath and opened the book still lying on his lap.

It was a photo album, Draco realized when a baby smiled at him from the first page.

“That’s me,” Harry whispered and ran his finger over the edges of the photograph reverently.

“You were a cute baby,” Draco observed, a soft smile on his face. He felt honoured that Harry wanted to share something that was so personal and obviously important to him with him.

Instead of answering Harry turned his head away from the album and buried his head in Draco’s neck. He stayed completely silent, so Draco only noticed he was crying when tears fell onto his neck. Immediately, thoughts started running through Draco’s head. Was it his fault that Harry was crying? Had his comment been inappropriate? Should he encourage Harry to cry? Try to comfort him? Even being around Harry for months hadn’t prepared him for this. Because he didn’t know what else to do and thought it couldn’t hurt he started rubbing Harry’s shoulder in a rhythm he hoped was calming. It took some time but eventually Harry pulled his face away from Draco’s neck again and brushed the tears off his cheeks with his sleeve.

“I’m sorry I’m such a mess,” Harry said his voice still thick with tears. “It’s just… it hit me all at once this morning and this is the first time I can actually grieve them.”

“You don’t have to apologize for that, I don’t mind,” Draco said, meaning it with all his heart. “You don’t have to be strong and stand up straight all the time. There are people around you who will catch you and support you when you break down, including me.”

Harry nodded and cuddled against Draco again. “I know that. It’s just sometimes hard to believe.”

“I’ll remind you of it as often as I have to until you believe it,” Draco promised fiercely.

They spent the rest of the morning looking at the photographs in the album. Most of them were of Harry’s parents, there were snapshots of them and their friends at Hogwarts, one almost official-looking photograph that showed them in the middle of the original Order of the Phoenix and several more casual ones of them in front of and inside their house in Godric’s Hollow and with baby Harry, but there were also a few of Harry in his crib and in the arms of his parents’ friends. When Harry closed the album, tears started running down his face again but this time he didn’t hide in Draco’s neck and even let Draco brush them off with his thumbs.

“This is all I have left of them,” Harry said when the tears had stopped again. “Well, this and my father’s cloak.”

Draco didn’t know what to say to that so he just hugged Harry tightly and it seemed like that was enough.

 

For lunch, Harry decided to make fruit waffles for them because one of his parents’ friends, Draco couldn’t remember who, had told him it had been his mother’s favourite, so he went out and bought the ingredients while Draco got some school work done, which he had neglected so far that day to be there for Harry. Harry came back an hour later with a bag full of groceries and, to Draco’s confusion, two leather bands.

“I thought we could tie these around the tokens Mrs Weasley gave us and wear them as necklaces,” Harry said when Draco held up the leather bands and shot him a questioning look.

A smile spread on Draco’s face. “I really like that idea. We can do it after lunch if you want to.”

Harry’s answering smile was smaller and still tinged with sadness, but it was a smile all the same so Draco counted it as a win.

“Do you want to help me make lunch?” Harry asked a few seconds later.

“Yes…” Draco said, more question than answer.

Harry’s smile grew a fraction. “Don’t worry, I’ll show you what to do.”

While they were cooking together, Harry flitting between showing Draco the basics and taking care of the more complicated steps himself, Draco noticed how the sadness that had rested on Harry the whole morning lifted bit by bit. It didn’t disappear completely, though, which became apparent when silent tears slid down Harry’s cheeks again a few minutes later and dropped into the batter he was mixing.

“Hey,” Draco said softly and slid into the space between Harry and the kitchen counter. “I don’t think tears are part of the recipe.”

For a second Draco worried he had said the wrong thing and Harry would only get sadder but then he gave a short teary laugh. Draco smiled at him. “That’s better. You can use my jumper if you need something to cry into.”

“Thank you, Draco.” Harry let go of the bowl of batter and instead wrapped his arms around Draco and buried his face in the offered jumper.

“You’re welcome,” Draco said and returned the hug.

 

After they’d had lunch Draco picked up the leather bands once again and shot Harry a smile. “Let’s do this.”

A few minutes later Harry and Draco were both satisfied with how their necklaces looked and Draco handed his to Harry, so he could help him put it on. Harry did, hanging it low enough that it would be hidden by Draco’s shirt because neither of them wanted to deal with the fallout of the press finding out about either of them having Soulmates just yet. Draco then did the same for Harry smiling at the grey Marks his fingers left on Harry’s skin that joined the ones already there from all the time they had spent touching so far that day.

“Thank you, Draco,” Harry said once his necklace was tied and turned around to give Draco a smile. “Not just for this but for everything you did today so far. But I think I need some time on my own now.”

“Of course,” Draco said and pulled Harry into a short hug. “Go then. You know my Floo is always open for you so if you want to you can come back whenever you want to.”

“I’ll come back,” Harry said and shot Draco another small smile before he stepped into the hearth to Floo to his flat.

When Harry was gone, Draco first went to his bedroom to change into a jumper that wasn’t drenched with tears and then sat down on the sofa with some of his textbooks to use the time he was alone to study some more for the subjects Harry wasn’t taking.

 

Draco had just closed his Arithmancy textbook and decided to go to bed when Harry stumbled back out of the hearth, still looking sad but now also like he had been sitting in a puddle of mud in the rain for hours. The rain, Draco could understand, it had had been raining on and off the whole day but where was the mud from?

“I’m back,” Harry said unnecessarily and slumped down on the floor. In every other situation Draco would have scolded him for ruining the wood but now he got up from the couch and sat down next to Harry, once again careful to keep a few inches between them.

“Is there anything I can do for you?” Draco asked gently for the second time that day.

Harry’s head snapped around and his eyes widened when they landed on Draco like he hadn’t even noticed Draco was there until then.

“I’m cold,” he said eventually.

Draco nodded. “You should get out of your wet clothes and change into dry ones, I’ll make us tea.”

Harry gave him a slow nod, pulled himself up again and then made his way to the guestroom.

When he came back just a few minutes later he was wearing a wool sweater with a big H on the front, joggers that seemed to be at least three sizes too big and fuzzy socks. He reminded Draco of an adorable half-drowned puppy, but he took care not to tell Harry that in case he took it the wrong way.

“Come here,” Draco said. He was already sitting on the sofa waiting for Harry, a tea tray on the table in front of him and a warm blanket his mother had made for him several years ago when she had taken up knitting next to him.

Harry approached the couch but remained standing, obviously waiting for Draco to tell him where or how close he was allowed to sit.

“You can sit on my lap,” Draco offered after a few moments of thought. Harry looked like he could use all the physical contact he could get, and Draco definitely wouldn’t mind the closeness either.

When Harry still didn’t move, Draco gently pulled him down to sit on his legs. Then he unfolded the blanket and wrapped it around both of them.

“Okay?”

Harry nodded but once again didn’t move further. Draco got the feeling he was afraid of doing something wrong, so he tried to assure him there was nothing he could do wrong.

“Hey, relax,” he said and once again began to rub Harry’s back. “You can lean against me and soak up as much of my warmth as you want to. I like having you close, even when you’re cold.”

Harry just looked at Draco for long seconds during which Draco kept his face as open as possible. When Harry had found whatever it was he had been looking for he slowly let himself relax and let Draco’s arms guide him closer until he was leaning against Draco.

“Thank you,” Harry sighed.

“You’re welcome,” Draco whispered back and squeezed Harry once.

 

When Harry was warm again and the tea pot empty Draco couldn’t keep from yawning any longer because damn it, he was beyond tired and as much as he wanted to stay there like that with Harry on his lap, completely warm and content, he needed sleep.

“Oh, sorry,” Harry said immediately when he noticed it and probably would have scrambled out of Draco’s lap if Draco hadn’t tightened his grip on him again to prevent that. “I shouldn’t have kept you up this long.”

“It’s all right,” Draco said and let his hands run over the tense muscles in Harry’s back. “I wanted to stay up with you. But maybe we should go to bed now.”

Harry nodded and when he tried to get off Draco’s lap again, Draco let him but pulled him closer again when he wanted to leave.

“Good night, Harry,” Draco said and pulled down Harry’s head to press a kiss to his forehead. “Sleep well.”

Harry blushed but gave Draco a small smile. “Good night to you too.”

Draco watched Harry leave the room before he stretched luxuriously and got up as well. Once he was in his room he undressed and admired the Marks all over his naked skin in front of the mirror for a few minutes before he put on pyjamas and fell onto his bed. He was asleep mere minutes later, still feeling warm and content.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)

**Author's Note:**

> How did you like it? Comments and Kudos are appreciated.


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